She is fascinated with
everything. If it moves, she giggles at
it and wants to chase it. If it makes a
sound, she wants to chase it. If it is
in the possession of an older sibling, she wants to touch it. If it looks fluffy or new (as in she wasn’t looking at it ten seconds
ago), she wants to chase it.
For her, “chase” means raise her arms and legs like in a superman hold and shove her body forward, sideways, or backward on her tummy. I’ve seen my other six babies, remember several siblings as babies, and have had numerous little nieces and nephews over – she is the first to do this type of scoot. (But then, each one has their own unique movement method!)
Theadora in my office
Maybe she has figured out that on
hard floors (her entire environment)
this type of movement makes the blanket travel with her.
She has learned to roll – has been
doing both of these movements since about 3 months (but she rarely wants to go anywhere, so it’s like “surprise! I want to
move at this second!” she loves to do the unexpected).
Lucas will get on one side of her,
giggle, and roll away. She will giggle
and follow. Monkey see, monkey do! He calls this game “rolling the ball” – I’m
literally making her bassinet when I hear, “Mom! Look!
I’m rolling a ball!” accompanied with a river of giggles from both Lucas
and Thea. He’s rolling in front of Thea
and she’s following him all the way across the bed. He rolls off the end of the bed (a fall of about 9 inches) and I’m about
to jump into protect-baby-from-floor-barrier when he puts both hands on Thea’s
tummy to keep her from rolling the last flip and says, “can’t go that way, I
can fall off but you can’t yet ‘cause your head isn’t done yet.”
Lucas is her protector, her shield from
danger, her loving big brother – and the one who leads her into most new (scary
for us!) adventures, like rolling non-stop or eating something new – “Look,
Mom! She likes ice cream!” (*facepalm
in my brain* but at least it’s Daddy’s homemade vanilla soft serve) next
line is “No, Baby Thea, only big boys can eat cones, you can just taste the ice
cream.” He’s letting her “taste” like we
do, tapping one finger on the food and putting it on her tongue.
That backfired with the sweet
potatoes.
Oh, yes, nice story:
A cute 3-month-old goes with her
family to Grandma’s favorite restaurant for a celebration. She’s the epitome of baby cuteness in her
Sunday best. Everyone is being so
well-behaved. Mom is having sweet potato (all the others have had sweet potato
as a first food) and lets baby taste it.
BABY TURNS INTO VELOCIRAPTOR!
She starts jumping forward, grabbing
at the table, mom’s fork, mom’s hair, anything to get back to the sweet
potato! Mom thinks she’s had enough
after a few tastes, but NO! Sweet little
cuteness erupts into a full blown literal tantrum! She flings herself back in frustration and
screams! Daddy thinks this is funny. (Everyone
else is bug-eyed, is she really throwing a fit?) Daddy says, “watch this”
and gives her a small taste on the end of a spoon. Thea sees the spoon coming, instantly stops
fussing, alligator tears evaporate, and she grabs the spoon with both hands and
shoves it into her mouth. Once she
sucked it dry, she looks up at Daddy with pleading eyes and babbles in what-adults-can’t-understand
to mean “more please?” He fed her a
little more to keep the peace.
Lucas was even spellbound watching Thea, his
sweet, tiny, fragile-looking baby sister toss her baby fit. Mommy took this excellent opportunity to
mention quietly that wasn’t very nice.
He says, “I don’t like that screaming.” To which I answer, “we feel just
like you do now when you drop yourself on the floor and start kicking.” (Doesn’t happen often, but it’s been a thing
since I started working.) “Oh.” I think gears are turning in his brain.
A birth story of our little angel (and a slideshow of proud siblings & family!)
February 22, 2019
The Story of Baby Thea
If you’ve been following my blog, you know I was growing my seventh little angel.
Today, I get to write the story of her arrival!
On February 19th, a beautiful Tuesday morning, my day started normally. During my 32 minute drive to work, the Baby started thinking there was not enough room and my body did the stretching contractions (Braxton-Hicks) that is very normal for me in the last month or two before birth. I didn’t think much of it, really. After my boss left for appointments, one of my office companions, Lily, a beautiful brown and white pittie belonging to my boss, started laying at my feet and wouldn’t let me go anywhere without her! This was a bit of a warning to me because Sheba (my Aussie mix) always does this to me when I’m in active labor. I left at one (normal time) to get to Christina and then my midwife appointment.
Christina had been babysitting, finished some errands at the college so she would be ready for the summer semester, caught the bus to 207 (the road I take into town), and was waiting for me. Along the way, my midwife texted to reschedule the appointment to Thursday and I laughed during my voice-text because I was very tired and that worked great for me. I added, “or when Baby is ready,” as a joke because my babies have all come on or after the due date. Everyone had been rooting for a February birth since the official “due date” was February 24th, and except for Lucas, my wee ones were between 9 and 13 days “overdue” so I usually ignored the due date and just gave a general month (in this case, I’d been saying March).
I got Christina, teased her about driving (she’s recently received her learner’s permit), and we headed home. Sheba was acting odd, I was starving; Louis had made lasagna Monday so I ate a huge plate and took a short nap.
When I got to gym with Becky (her class is on Tuesday, the others are all Wednesday), the contractions were still there, but, like I said, that is normal for me. It had been happening off and on already for about a week and a half, so I just went about work because they were easy to ignore. Some friends and I chatted about babies as I was leaving, and someone said, “you know about your body by now, right?” I laughed, “each is different, but I’m still thinking March.”
Wow, was I wrong.
As Becky texted Christina and Louis to tell them we were off & headed to pick up Christina at CAP, Becky said, “Mom, I can’t drive us home, but if the baby keeps contracting like that, maybe Christina can.”
We laughed. Part of the driving restrictions on a learner’s permit forbid night driving for the first few months; but we always teased Christina that she’d have to drive home in the dark if I was in labor.
Home, I was starved, but my belly felt full after four strawberries. I took a shower and crashed. I kept waking up every couple hours, but I’m a light sleeper so that’s also normal. Each time, though, I noticed contractions. I’d check my phone just to see what time it was. Midnight. 1:40. 2:30. 3:50. At almost 4, I realized I was sweating and I decided to wait for fifteen minutes (so the water softener cycle was finished) and take a shower. The next glance at my watch showed 4:19. I took a shower and the first contraction after the water hit was very strong. I felt movement inside me. “Wow, you sure you’re ready?” I asked. I was sure that was just a fluke and usually the warm water calms contractions down. When the next two made my legs feel like jelly, I got out of the shower and crawled back into bed. The phone said 4:35. I wasn’t about to wake anyone or call Misti for three oddly strong contractions.
I tried to sleep. I had about two hours before I had to get ready for work.
At somewhere before 6am, I tried getting ready for work. I had to stop and breathe through contractions that were easy to time and I felt the baby moving slowly down inside of me. I was about to wake Louis but ended up stretching through a contraction. We have a mind link, I think. Louis woke up as I was stretching. He goes into mega cleaning and question mode. This is his serious mode. He has been through it enough to know we were going to have a baby this morning – or at least today. He told me to call Misti, he woke the kids up to help clean (normally, we clean before bed, but they had been in a non-cleaning mood the previous night), and directed the house with efficiency. I was restless, so kept walking around in between. Christina and Becky didn’t want to get out of bed. I went into the barracks to find out why not.
“Mom! You can’t have the baby in here!” Christina shrieked, covering her head.
“So, get up please and help Daddy with cleaning. Y’all should have done that last night. Once you finish, you can go back to bed, but he’s really stressing about the house and people coming so please help.”
No answer. I could feel another contraction creeping up. “Okay, you have about 20 seconds before I get another contraction and…”
Christina bolted, “MOM! I’m up! I’ll help Dad! GET CONTRACTIONS OUT OF MY ROOM!”
Becky was up too. Kimberly was definitely awake. Mission accomplished. I went back to the kitchen table. My “leave” alarm reminded me to text or call my boss. 6am though, I figured I should just text – plus I didn’t want to talk to anyone at the moment.
Misti showed up (can’t remember if the house was clean, but based on the voices and giggling and a movie being on, I’d guess it was straightened). Mom was on the way, she told us she had to be at one of my brother’s promotions at 8am. The girls had turned on “The Two Towers” and as Louis walked by during the Uruk-hai production scene and he ordered, “Turn that off, you can see a real birth soon enough.” I can’t remember if the result was “Wild Kratts” or “Dumbo” but there was something far less messy on the tv a minute later. (I did hear one of the teenagers or preteens quip, “Mom will sound like an orc.” Louis and I laughed. We’re nerds.)
By 8:30, I was immune to the world. I heard Misti’s voice, smelled Louis (I was leaning on him), and faintly heard background voices. I was focused on this job.
8:42am and our little one came into the world, veiled. Misti took the bag off and the Baby screamed to test the limit of her lungs! (We didn’t know Baby was a “she” just yet!) Baby opened her eyes fully and stared up at me. Then she screamed to rattle the roof again. The dogs were barking. We discovered our Baby was Thea!
Welcome to our crazy world, Theadora Taliesyn Tart. You are loved and cherished!
Theadora (after her great-grandfather Melvin Theodore Pearson) means “gifted by God” and Taliesyn (feminine form of your grandfather’s favorite character from a Celtic legend) means, “one with the shining brow, one who sings wisdom.” And Daddy chose the nickname “Thea” because he likes it. (Your uncle texted that he’d call you “3T” – yes, Daddy searched for two “T” names we both liked!) I kept both names the same length, since that’s what we’ve done – all of the children’s names have the same number of letters in the first name and middle name. Theadora 8 letters, Taliesyn 8 letters – told you we are nerds.
Mom (Grandma Joanne in the pictures) came back with a shower of baby girl goodies! (And, yes, this is why she’s in such cute clothes once we managed to get them on her!)
Theadora, I pray you always feel the love of your family as you wiggle your way up to adulthood. I pray you feel the warmth and see the light of God’s love reflected in the faces of your sisters and brother, mother and father, aunts and uncles, grandparents and cousins. We have accepted the honor of being your guides to lead you to Jesus, to raise you in love, and to give you room to find, develop, and follow the passion of life God has rooted within you. You are a daughter of God, a precious gift to us, and chosen to bring light through your smile.
Becky said I can’t post a baby story without her pictures! So here is a little slideshow:
Lucas kept trying to “pet” and “kiss” Baby Thea
Christina & Thea (oldest & youngest)
Lucas said “you are my love, Baby Thea!”
Grandma Joanne & Thea
Christina and Becky are already vying for who gets the baby
Picture overload! My family’s Christmas party 2018.
December 22, 2018
Pearson Christmas Party
Imagine twelve adults and thirteen children racing around a beautifully decorated house and every single one of them is acting like they are somewhere in that magic child age around 5 to 8. That was our Christmas party this year. It was the best!
My amazing sister and brother hosted.
Katy is always ready for a picture!
Livy painting faces! Anastasia is concentrating on being very still. She was rewarded with a beautiful butterfly!
Jaquline got snowflakes to match her dress!
Mrs. Claus and helpers! Tina, Christina (Christy the elf), and Mandy (Elsa-elf!)
Liam was here, but jumped out of the way! Brother-cousin time L-to-R JJ, Lucas, Isaac
This video shows our baby sister’s personality – it matches the hat!
Group Selfie! Tina, Ray, Becca, Charles, Allison
The teenage grandchildren (Becky, 13, and Christina, 15)
Bouncy Hat plus Sherlock Pipe (both with accents…)
The pro (Aunt Becca) teaching JJ how to take a selfie… (He knows he’s adorable!)
Mom and the boys (silly faces): L-to-R Nathan, Ray, Tina, Charles, Louis, and Andy
Mom and the girls: L-to-R Mary, Kayla, Katy, Allison, Tina, Becca, and me.
We did not get a group picture, or a full cousin picture, because everyone was just having too much fun! The girls (my pictures come from Christina, Becky, and Kimberly) managed to get many active shots.
This was our first year without my Daddy. Katy and Andy had set up the layout so that he would have a comfy chair, a central view, close to food, close to everything in what Kimberly called “Santa Boompa’s throne.” (The chair with the footstool, Mom’s seat was supposed to be the matching one next to his.) From this view you could see Livy’s facepainting station (she is so talented), the Selfie station (which was hilarious), the “dance floor” (right in front – so much fun!), the food and beverage buffet area was to the left (easy access to refills and the silly shenanigans going on in there), and the covered porch area was just behind it (where not just the boys were showing off their strength… or trying to).
Even though he wasn’t there, I didn’t feel like Daddy was missing. I heard him in my brothers, Mom, and several of the children. I heard his laugh when the boys were showing off. I could hear him cheering each one on. I felt his smile as Anastasia passed out gifts for each of the sister- and brother-cousins. The little ones ran around giving drawings, toys, and hugs to each other and I felt him smile because he loved to give. I felt his heart as Kimberly reminded me she needed my phone to “take pictures and movies for Grandma,” because “Granddaddy always likes to get pictures for Grandma!”
My Daddy’s legacy lives as the humor and fun he always had rubbed off on us kids and our children. We love to see each other smile and laugh. We encourage each other. We share with each other. We love.
This makes me so happy I cried on the way home.
Daddy isn’t really gone. I miss him so bad; I miss being able to talk with him. No one listens to me chatter away about the story ideas I have like he did. Daddy didn’t seem to mind if it was the fifth – or fiftieth – time I told a cute something the kids did or a neat thing I learned; he never said “I’ve already heard that.” I miss that, yes.
But he’s here. I keep hearing the sing-song voice from the Disney cartoon: “he lives in you.”
Daddy lives in all 25 of us that were there (and the 4 who weren’t) in some way. His legacy is us.
Rebeccah’s creative naming scheme for the cute little Guinea Pig triplets!
September 22, 2018
Baby Guinea Pig Names!
Today we get to introduce our baby Guinea Pigs by name!
Rebeccah decided to use dessert names this time. Since we won’t have them forever, she gives them “temporary” names that match their color or personalities. We’re raising them to sell once they are at least six weeks old. (They will be six weeks old and ready for their forever homes after October 20th.)
So this beauty is “Rocky Road.” She is the one who looked like a squirrel at birth. She is a gorgeous mottled brown color.
This solid tan one is “Custard,” and she follows the dad, TobyMac, all over the run! She is super cuddly.
The third one is currently called “Cheesecake.” He is the only male in the triplets. He’s a half-and-half mix of Custard and Rocky Road as far as color goes. He is Jillian’s new baby!
The girls love being the Guinea Pigs’ caretakers. They spend a lot of time cuddling and loving on them to make sure they will be just as cuddly and friendly as their parents. So far, they are thirteen days old and super friendly.
Here is Daddy (TobyMac, big tan blob), and all three triplets!
Mama (Taylor, big tan/brown/white) takes good care of them!
Near the end of October, we’ll be saying “goodbye” to Rocky Road and Custard as they find loving homes. One thing I know, these cuddly, snuggly critters will forever leave their tiny pawprints on all of our hearts!
The girls started a new project: guinea pigs. Christina saved and bought a female from the pet store. Rebeccah and Kimberly “rehomed” two females whose family was going overseas.
We built a big cage for them to graze and roam in. (Guinea pigs hop like bunnies when they are really happy!) Well, “Ginger” was really “TobyMac.” Since all three of these animals were happily living in one cage together – Taylor surprised us with “Sweet Potato.”
(Now, the girls know for sure how to sex guinea pigs from birth so they won’t be fooled by a salewoman again.)
Now their guinea pig project has become hand raising babies to sell. They are gorgeous! Baby guinea pigs are born with open eyes, full fur, claws, and teeth! They are about 20% of the adult’s size but 10% of the weight (they are skinny, long things).
Sweet Potato stretches to look half her mom’s size, but when she curls up in a cute little ball, she’s so tiny – about the size of a ping-pong ball. By weight, she’s only 10% of mom’s size. Baby guinea pigs grow super fast. Between three and six weeks, they are independent. They actually start trying to graze the first day! About 3 months, they are adult size! Males get bigger than females. However, TobyMac is only 4 months old so he is still smaller than the over 1 year old girls, Taylor and Avery.
The girls are super excited to “spoil” Sweet Potato for a few weeks so another family gets a loving, cuddly, super sweet little pet!
