Evelyn's first play date!

Evelyn got to visit with Ian, Matt and Lisa's nine week old little bruiser. They got along great, and we're certain that they'll be best friends forever. At one point, Ian got his hand caught in Evelyn's sleeve. It was pretty darn adorable. Really fascinating to watch them interact. Looking forward to many more play dates in the future.

After the play date, we decided to go all out and take advantage of Evelyn's good mood. We grabbed some Chinese food and headed to the local production of Annie. One of my 4th graders was preforming in the show (and did a pretty incredible job!). Evelyn slept through most of the show, waking only to demand food.

Heather's been storing milk and for the past two nights Evelyn has taken a bottle. This has been great as a father, getting to share in the joy of feeding her. Also, it's given heather some much needed rest. It seems like she's growing every day. So excited for the rest of her life. And loving where we are now. It's so beautiful.

We'll see a bunch of you soon!

Two week check-up

This is Heather. We can't figure out how to change my font back to blue, so some of the posts appear to have been written by Todd. Perhaps we'll just start signing them.

Evelyn had her "two week" check-up today weighing in at a monstrous 8 pounds 2 1/2 oz. Todd did her bath on his own for the first time this morning and did beautifully except that Evelyn decided to urinate all over him on their walk across the apartment. I don't gather this will be the last time as he has taken to keeping her diaper-free from time to time in order to let her "air out." He he he :) Our precious baby also decided to pee all over the scale at the Dr's office. She has quite a sense of humor. We loved the pediatrician; very personable and down to earth. She seems to think that the red spot on Evelyn's eye is likely a birthmark and will probably fade around 6 months or so. She also encouraged us that we were doing a good job so far. Whew! It was quite strange to hear "Evelyn Riggins" called in the waiting room. Also, she got her first piece of official mail today; from the Social Security folks. So neat to see her name in print. Todd and I went to lunch at Rikki's; we enjoyed our first meal out together as a family of three and Evelyn was at her very best and so adorable.

Nearly three weeks have passed and we are overwhelmed with love for this little darling. Ahhhh...if you could just see the bend of her shoulder and hear her little baby sounds and feel how soft her tiny legs are. She is perfect. Also, there is this thing she does when she is nursing where she puts her little hands to her cheeks and pushes on them over and over. Todd and I are having so much fun. Never mind the complete lack of sleep we are facing every day. Today in the Peds office we were both trying to figure out if there was time to sleep on the exam table before the Doc came in. Then after we ordered at lunch we both laid our heads on the table until our food came. Tonight I was beating my waffle batter while sitting on the kitchen floor, leaning on the cabinet, and closing my eyes. This is no life for the weary. I think some day we'll look back and chuckle at these funny little sleepy scenes. Some day.

Ha! Wish you could hear Todd talking to her right now: "You're going to pet dogs with those hands. You are...because we like dogs, chubby chicken." He has also been calling her "pizza face" because of her terrible case of baby acne. I think this is mean...and funny.

So excited to see many of you later this month!

Sunday Morning

Evelyn has had a lovely Sunday morning, sleeping soundly on her dad's chest while he read. It's twelve degrees outside, and the freezing fog overnight has left a unspeakably beautiful crust of snowy ice on all the trees outside. The sun is out in full force and it is a beautiful day. Our apartment's radiators are banging and clanging, assuring us that all is warm and toasty inside. Evelyn is the picture of peace and contentment this morning. I'm so thankful for my incredible wife and lovely new child.

names

A list of currently acceptable names for Miss Evelyn Naya (inspired by Chris & Michelle's blog):

Chubby Chicken

Turtle

Muffin

My girl

Baby girl

Little lovely

Schnooky/Schnookums

Poopy Pants McGee

My love

Kitten

Puppy Pants

Cup-cake

Pup-cake

My sweet

Precious

Pooper

Puppykins

First movie!

Make sure the volume is up to fully appreciate the cuteness of the hiccups!

and be sure to watch the whole thing!

peaceful time

A little bit of peaceful time in between fussiness. Heather gave her an excellent back massage that soothed her nicely. A few short minutes after these pictures, Evelyn awoke, demanding a square meal immediately. She's so lovely.

One week and one day

I think Evelyn is taking after her uncle Ryan in her penchant for loud and deliberate flatulence... I know uncle Ryan will be proud. I can tell she really enjoys pooping and always seems a bit relieved after one of her ryan-esque outbursts. I also think she's a fan of Cat Stevens and loves the "African Dreamland" CD that Grandma gave her. Sorry we've not been very active in our online lives, we're so enamored of the little critter that it's hard to be good about getting information up online. we've got more photos that'll likely turn up sometime soon...

Had a great Thanksgiving outing, baby Evelyn's first time leaving our apartment. I warmed up the car for a half hour and pulled it right up to the alley door of our building. It felt like some sort of secret mission or something. We filled the back of the car with the wonderfully aromatic goodies made by Nana Cheryl and Jaime (stuffing, chicken & noodles, peanut butter pie, and chocolate pie) before whisking Eveyln through the cold into the toasty car and then sped off through the snow-covered streets. Kelly and Thom were wonderful hosts as always. Eveyln was on her best behavior. She's wonderful. I am continually amazed at this new life in our home. It is so amazingly beautiful.

Some photos are on Flickr

Alright! we've uploaded some of the first pictures of the beautiful Evelyn Naya to our photo site:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bingo_todd/sets/72157625434091362/

Home sweet Home

Left the hospital yesterday at around four. It was four degrees outside. Now we're home safe and sound and incredibly cozy. It is so nice to be in our own space, away from the florescent lights, forced air, and cafeteria food of the hospital. Baby Evelyn and mama Heather are both doing great. This is all just so incredible.

The announcement on the Hospital website

welcome to the world......

Evelyn Naya Riggins.

Born 11-18-10 at 12:35 pm Mtn time.

seven pounds five ounces

20 1/2 inches

simply beautiful

heather's doing amazing. she is incredible.

this is todd: our contractions begun at about 4 this morning: we're feeling happy and healthy. five minutes apart and progressing beautifully. can't wait to meet this new little amazing critter. more info to come....

So we're ready. Bags packed and ready to roll. We'll likely update this blog fairly regularly once the labor ball gets rolling... Due date is one week from today, so it could be anytime. Heather's feeling pretty well. Ready to meet this beautiful little person. This picture is a bit dated, taken on oct. 23. Heather went out for a 1.5 mile stroll around the park today, and then a beautiful drive out to the river trail. This fall in Montana has been absolutely incredible. Warm and sunny. Our high temperatures have been in the 70s. crazy. last year at this time we had already had substantial snow and subzero temps. This has been exquisite. The perfect season for a baby to enter the world. Can't wait.

Apple Lentil Salad

So we have recently been loving this apple lentil salad we found in our Mennonite cookbook and thought we'd pass on the recipe:

1 Cup Lentils

Soak 15 minutes in hot water

2 Tbsps curry powder

1 tsp salt

In large saucepan heat 1/4 cup olive oil. Add salt and curry powder and heat until bubbly. Drain lentils, add to saucepan, and fry briefly.

2 Cups water

Add and cook until absorbed (adding more water if needed to cook lentils until tender), about 20 minutes. Drain any excess water. cool.

2 tart apples (cored and diced)

1/4 Cup lemon juice or cider vinegar

combine to prevent browning. Mix with cooled lentils.

2 potatoes (cooked[boiled], cooled, peeled, and chopped)

1/2-1 small onions (thinly sliced)

handful of fresh or frozen parsley(chopped-optional-we didn't use this tonight)

Mix in with salt to taste. Serve warm or at room temp. (we also have loved it chilled)

we remarked continually when eating this today how great it was and how much we loved it. not sure if anyone is interested in trying it, but if so, be sure to let us know what you thought!

still no baby-- we're getting more and more ready!

First Picture of our Baby!

isn't she cute!?!

So last weekend we celebrated our 4th anniversary with a lovely trip to Fort Benton, MT. We ate at the historic Grand Union Hotel. It was absolutely fantastic. Heather had the Huckleberry roasted chicken. I had some sort of fish and a locally raised beef tenderloin. Plus the incredible fall salad with wilted spinach, duck, and local spaghetti squash. All in all it was a great way to celebrate four beautiful years together. The night before, we went to a six-man football game in Highwood, MT. Small town excitement turned us into football fans for the evening. Getting ready for the baby is in full swing. More and more excited to meet her! And to introduce her to our families! This weekend our anniversary celebration continues with a trip to Glacier National Park and a night in a Bed and Breakfast (won from a raffle at a film festival last spring!)

Heather is more beautiful than ever and the baby is working out for an active and successful career as a gymnast or acrobat. She's moving constantly; it's pretty incredible and beautiful. I am addicted to feeling her move. We went to a baseball game and Heather insisted on having her picture taken with the mascot. (the great falls voyagers--yes, it's an alien with a baseball head). Heather's addicted to these mexican wedding cookies and chai from a bakery here, so that's been exciting for me as well. I prefer the pumpkin bars.

Heather made an amazing mushroom sauce that we loved and ate over pasta and then on a homemade cast iron pizza the next night. It was absolutely incredible. Fall is fast approaching here in montana; Bowhunting season opened last weekend, our radiators are popping and hissing like they'll soon explode, weather reports begin to mention the chance of snow in higher elevations. we've got a trip to Glacier planned for next weekend. Looking forward to the last few trips we'll take up there before parenthood. School has started and I have been quite busy. I have a good group of kids this year, along with some pretty huge challenges. I can't believe how quick the summer went by.

more excited every day for the changes that will be happening soon soon soon!!!

Todd and I had our child-birth preparation class at the hospital today! Six hours of so much learning...it all made us very excited. Todd was incredible, practicing breathing/massage with me and he finally got to see the room where I'll have the baby girl. The teacher was really good!

June 30 ultrasound

There she is! You can see her little hand and profile. So beautiful! I can't wait to meet her!

mom & dad in Glacier

Enjoyed a visit from mom and dad riggins! This was taken near Glacier National Park.

Visit from the Hillenburg Girls!

The Hillenburgs visited us and we went up to Glacier National Park! This photo was taken at lovely lake Josephine.
This was an incredible rainbow we found in Missoula. The weather was pretty rainy for most of their visit...

Big thanks to them all for coming! We had a great time and love to have visitors to show off our beautiful state to!

http://www.krtv.com/news/students-learn-about-msu-great-falls-wind-turbine/

Todd took his students on a walking field trip today to the new wind turbine. The college of technology put on a presentation as well. He was interviewed on video, but for now it looks like we just have this fine quote from Mister Todd Riggins, teacher man. I think he is the best teacher in the whole world.

here's the video: skip to about 17:25 unless you want to watch the entire great falls news for the night...

accident

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/article/20100524/NEWS01/5240310/Great-Falls-woman-dies-in-Idaho-rollover

Two students from my school were in an accident last night; the mother was driving them to pick up their father. The car rolled over in Idaho and the mother was killed instantly, the two children were thrown from the car. One has since been pronounced dead, the other has a 50/50 chance. Please pray for the family. It's incredibly sad. So much loss. I can't imagine the pain, especially the father's. Wear your seat belts. sigh.

prickly pear

Hiking out at the North Shore Trail the other day. Just a few minutes from our apartment, it's become our go-to hike. Great views of the Missouri. Prickly pear catcus and yucca plants all around. We saw a snake on this hike, but I don't think it had a rattle. Heather's celebrating her birthday (it's June 7th) in Indiana right now, with a surprise party.. Wishing I could be there for it. Having her gone makes me feel a bit bewildered. I ate General Tso's chicken last night, and a ridiculous hot dog today, if that's any indication of how I'm feeling. Then just now I bought brussels sprouts, broccoli, and frozen spinach at the grocery, hopefully to inspire me to eat healthier while she's away. I sure miss her- even though it's only been two days. Things are so much better shared. Happy birthday, darling.

geese

So heather and I went to the park by our river (about 1/4 mile from our apartment) and went crazy for the little baby geese. it seems that little else could be cuter.. the windy day made for awful sound quality, so i put some music on it instead(it's the david rawlings machine). perhaps it's the child growing inside my wonderful wife that makes me appreciate the baby geese more than ever. I barely could keep myself from running at the group and stealing one of them. They look so soft and fuzzy.

becoming more and more excited about the bun heather's cooking. we got to hear the heartbeat again on wednesday (still about 160). lovely, so lovely. we're looking into buying a doppler fetal heart monitor so we can listen anytime we wish. life is good- springtime confounds us up here; it'll be near 80 one day and then snowing the next. keeps things interesting. heather made homemade noodles last night and i absolutely love it. so delicious-- true comfort food. huge thanks to heather's mom for the recipe! I can't believe that i've got less than a month of school left. trying out a writing project on haiku. we'll see how they turn out.

Loot

Last week my Mom sent me a box of hot maternity shirts, including a darling little cotton one with tiny red birds all over that she wore while pregnant with me. I think she tried without success to get my younger sister to wear it during her pregnancy! It's perfect. She also sent dried fruit for Todd and my childhood stuffed dog "Jermie" which Todd & I think looks exactly like Bingo! Funny how we attach ourselves to things. Jermie is in a million childhood photos. It made me feel somehow

small and young and so happy to see him again. Also, she sent buttons from Margie, her mother in' law who passed away. I'm developing quite a collection of old buttons from very special people I love. It was such a good gift.

After that we received a sweet little baby blanket in perfect 'Todd & Heather' kinds of colors from Aunt Karen. It's lovely with vibrant green, yellow, purple...

Yesterday another package came in the mail from Melanie, full of lotions for the belly, bath salts, and this crazy cool pregnancy belt full of rice that you can make cold or hot for comfort. There was also some of her favorite maternity clothes worn while she was pregnant with the lovely Isabella and even some new tank-tops and an awesome maternity skirt! Best of all, there was a card. Melanie can really fill a card. I get so excited when I get mail from her. I suppose I just love what she has to say. Also, she and Amanda have the most fun to read writing in the world.

My neighbor brought us a jar of some incredible bath salts, which he said is closest in minerals to that of the hot springs I can no longer get in. Hot springs are one of my favorite things. I'd surprised Todd with a stay at Chico B&B/hot springs for his birthday, but the mid-wife said it's definitely not safe for the baby. Amit got us the bath salts and told us we could soak in the tub without the possibility of boiling the baby. We like this idea.

I guess we just didn't know so much loot came with a new baby! We feel pretty blessed. Thanks for all the gifts, everyone, and especially the letters and cards. Gma and Grandad, your letter meant so much to both of us. We love to hear stories and details from your lives.

We've decided to move down the hall to the two bedroom that is being remodeled as we speak. It should help tremendously with our lack of space and addition to our family. We'll let you know the new apartment number once we know our move-in date. The landlord says June 1 (which would be amazing in the event that Todd's parents come to visit), but their son who is doing all of the work on the apartment says "by November." Quite a difference...time will tell :)

All is very well here. We're still enjoying many hikes and tried tennis out for the first time ever. It's actually quite fun! Thanks for the rackets, Mel & Emmanuel! Several students from Todd's school happened to be at the courts and while we were pretty shy about having an audience our first time, they gave us lots of "Nice one!" "Whooooaaa...he can really hit it!" I don't think they knew the rules either. We felt so very cool. His turtle is a huge hit (and major distraction for kids who don't feel like listening) in the class-room. A handful of children are now begging their parents for turtles. One little girl even got one. When brainstorming potential names for her new turtle with Todd she said, "I don't know...I was thinking maybe "Doggy" or "Kitty"...not to far from our turtle's name, "Puppy"! Ha.

Todd is the dreamy husband he's always been, so patient with my random bursts of cravings and nausea. He never stops making me laugh. I'm a little tired of the name "Moody Monkey" but I think making up silly names for me that include kernels of truth in them is just his way of coping while living with me, the walking emotional roller coaster. He is reading a book called "Don't just stand there!" which I believe is a guide for men with partners in labor. It looks hilarious. We have lots of plans for hikes this summer in Glacier and are welcoming all to join us!

Pretty amazing! I could've listened to the heartbeat forever. Wish that the sound was on the video- but it's not. the ultrasound tech was a bit of a grouch.. Our due date is nov. 17-- exactly as heather predicted. she's amazing. The little critter is about the size of a horsefly, or a coffee bean. the heart beat was around 160- nice and strong and amazingly fast. if you were hoping for twins- you're out of luck. there's only one.

feeling incredibly amazed. we'll meet with the doctor next week and have the 2nd ultrasound in about 3 months....

more information later. we just had an amazing trip to the oregon coast.

Six Weeks

It seems I'm a bit over six weeks along in the journey and I am feeling fine! The neurologist thought the baby would make my migraines "worse or better" (my brother pointed out how ridiculous it is that we pay people big bucks to tell us such simple things). I think my headaches are gone. I have so much energy and have enjoyed (almost) daily hikes along the North Shore trail. Six weeks means the nose, mouth, and ears are starting to form. The tiny heart is beating away and he/she is the size of a lentil, which is soooooo much cooler than the poppy seed she was last week. The rest of her brains, bones, and muscles are forming and the very thought of that makes me cry. My books and website report that I may be feeling a sort of "split personality" or "ricocheting emotions" due to the fluctuating hormones. I deny that this is true...unless of course you count the fact that I went from singing in the shower to hiking for three hours alone and in tears over whether Black Beards blend coffee has 200 or 400 mg of caffeine in 8 oz and whether or not I would be a selfless enough parent because after all I am struggling to give up coffee. Detox is killer. Thank God for my husband.

We got our first baby package from Diane, Todd's Mom who will be "Gramma Diane" some day! The package was so thoughtful: chocolate, girl scout cookies, organic 'Mama candy' to ward off nausea, material for our never ending creative projects, and baby onesies! First time holding baby clothes and coming close to imagining that it will be my baby wearing them. Crazy! Todd and I sat there in shock for full minutes just staring at these cute little things before we broke out into giggles. Gpa Lloyd has been tie dying things back home and Diane tells me he'll soon be tie dying baby clothes! Thank God we have been given 8 + months for this to all sink in. Thank you, Diane, for such a thoughtful package. Last week my Mom sent a card with a beautiful picture of her 7 months pregnant with me. Hard to believe she was pregnant with her 5th baby at the age that we're just starting our family. Speaking of nice things people have given/sent to us upon hearing the news. My sister n' law, Kelli, made the most spectacular card, which I will post as soon as I can figure out how. Those of you who know her are aware that one of her love languages is in card making. My sister, Sarah, sent an informative calendar with facts about each stage of the pregnancy, which you can organize according to your due date. Also, our neighbor friends brought us baby/parenting magazines from Missoula along with Cardamom (my absolute favorite) and Mexican Chocolate ice cream all the way from the Big Dipper ice cream shop in Missoula. "The ice cream is for the baby! Not you two!" Mo, a nurse from work, brought a bunch of cupcakes to Todd's school to congratulate us. We are overwhelmed by all the gifts, the blessings, and the kind words/advice people have shared. Thanks, all, we are so grateful! Made it half way through the baby name book and realized that of the 23 girl names on our list only 2 end in something other than the letter a. Weird. I wonder what this says about us. I am eager to know the name of this person I'm sacrificing coffee for, but realize this could take many months. We happen to love the naming of things, animals...and now a person. It's all so exciting!

Our parents...

Pregnancy update: We thought I had two whole days of morning sickness, but unless morning sickness is now contagious we're thinking I actually had some sort of delightful little GI virus. Todd promptly got it and now we are close to being back to normal. Our first ultrasound is April 6th!

Tonight we drove to Freeze Out Lake and were completely mesmerized by the annual Snow Goose migration which takes place the last two weeks of March. Thousands and thousands of geese from California and elsewhere stopping to eat barley and fatten up before continuing on to Canada, and eventually the Arctic. My breath was taken away two different times when they all flew off at once against a perfect (just before sunset) sky with sounds of wings and ?honking?. We were there this time last year with our friend Joe from IN, who is both passionate and knowledgeable about birds. We went to eat in Choteau and talked about this new life and how ours will change.

We've had a lot of great talks over the years we've been together about what sort of parents we'd like to be...what sorts of things we've noticed in other people...parenting we admire.

We've had unbelievable examples of good parenting, but know our style will be uniquely us. Some things I love....

I love that my earliest memories are full of raising, growing, making things. That my dad turned our land into a sort of petting zoo: Chickens and their baby chicks, ducks, catfish, sheep, a horse, dogs, cats, and an occasional cow who would make a brief appearance before ending up in our freezer. I love that I know the precise smell of pups just born in the early morning, of straw and old barn-wood, of a newborn lamb which we fed with a bottle in our very own basement! My senses are heightened when I think of my childhood. We were wild...exploring the land and the barns, and the silo, getting so dirty, dressing kittens in baby doll clothes, and never ever coming inside. I love that I remember carrying wood for our wood burning stove and I love that my Mom made our clothes and then taught us to do the same. I love that I modeled clothing I made in 4H, even if it was the dorkiest outfit I have ever seen in my life. I love that my Mom took piano lessons with us (even if none of us ever really caught on) and that I cannot recall a single time she's looked at me without mentioning how "naturally beautiful" I am. I am in love with growing our own food like my parents did and still remember exactly where I would sit on the porch swing when I would snap green beans and shuck corn. I loved the smells of it all and the way it felt in my hands. I love that we would pile all of our blankets into the bath-tub or on the balcony or on the stairs or in the closet because we just felt like sleeping in places other than our beds...just for kicks. I hate that my Dad put me in a pageant, but I love that he was still proud of me when all I got was "Miss Congeniality." I probably complained about getting up in the wee hours of the morning to feed the baby chicks and dogs before school and I'm sure I complained when I had to snap beans, but I think so much of my Mom and Dad for ignoring my complaints and seeing the bigger picture. And yes, I'm aware of how very 'Little House on the Prairie' our lives really sound. I was teased about that very thing in elementary school, but even then I think deep down I knew it was a cool way to live :)

I love that there are barely any pictures of Todd or his siblings without the family dog. I love that he played outside in the creek and park behind their house for whole days at a time. I adore the fact that he created these fabulous little people out of light bulbs and an assortment of objects around the house using a hot glue gun. More than this, I love that his parents encouraged him so much creatively and that to this day their home is decorated with kid art! I think it's both brave and amazing that as they got older his Mom designated one night a week that one of the kids would cook for the family. I love that his Mom needs the tiniest reason to throw a party for someone...she celebrates everything!! I love that as soon as Todd started showing interest in guitar they went to get him one. I love that Todd and his Mom used to go to lunch together every week when he was in college. I have his Dad to thank for the fact that Todd makes errands fun for me. He often reminisces on trips with his Dad to Big Lots and to yard sales on Saturday mornings and says his Dad would make it such a blast. I love that his Dad tells his sister how pretty she is and that he hugs her all the time and came to her classroom as a special guest artist. I love that he has continued to pursue art and is such an inspiration to Todd, creatively. I love love love that his parents have raised them so close to their extended family and to know and respect and spend time with their Grandparents. I love that they spend one week out of every year with each other in Michigan.

I love that both of our families hug a lot.

All that said, I think we have a strong foundation and am elated at the thought of introducing this other little life to such neat people. Here's to our parents!

thursday

It still does not seem real that we are having a child. I wonder when it really will sink in? Probably a gradual realization up to the moment we bring the little creature home? so wonderful, so beautiful. Feeling all sorts of things. Grateful. Overwhelmed. Peace. Hope that Heather will feel better soon. The last couple nights have been rough.

Puppy

I have a pet turtle named Puppy. We named her puppy because we desperately want a dog, but the time is not right, yet. Puppy currently lives in my classroom, where she does her best to distract 4th graders from standardized tests and boring instruction... I'll try and post more later, but I think that my beautiful wife summed up today, and I must get to bed.

Perfect Sunday

This is the place where Todd and I are going to try to keep our family and friends updated on our lives. It may get boring sometimes, but we'll stay faithful. Just you wait and see.

This morning we borrowed our friend's lovely dog, Lily, to join us on a perfect Sunday walk. The North Shore Trail runs along the lovely Missouri River and is quickly becoming one of our favorite trails. Lily talked Todd into taking his first Spring dip into the Missouri. They both fetched sticks all afternoon. It was cold. Both Todd and Lily shook their wet fur all over me until I too was covered in river water. We then snuck Lily into our "no pets allowed" apartment building and just hung out with her, pretending she was our dog. I made hummus and Todd made tabouleh and we took it to Kelly & Thom's for a delicious Mediterranean dinner. Kelly made falafel and pita, tzatziki, and honey cake. We returned their dog and enjoyed playing 'toss the elephant' with their adorable little toddler, Meredith. Todd's favorite trick is to stick Meredith's beloved stuffed elephant into Lily's collar to make her mad. Had good talks with Kelly and Thom and are grateful to have made good friends to share meals with here in Great Falls.