It's a Boy!!!

We are so happy to announce the birth of our son, Ashton James Tackett!! We was born Nov. 4th, 2014 at 12:23 and he weighed 7.3 pounds. We were 40 weeks on Nov. 3 and the obstetrician decided a c section was needed at the 40 week check, so it was scheduled for the next day. 

Our Baby has Arrived!!!

We are so happy to introduce Ashton James. He was born on 11/04 and he weighed 7.3 pounds. He is perfect in every way and has a calm, happy temperament.

                                                   Ashton in his Phil & Teds Carrier

                                Ashton on Daddy's lap in Newark Airport, waiting to go home.

                                                   Ashton at home with his brother, Jared.

                                                   Ashton with Daddy at Newark Airport

                                       Ashton with his Indian Godparents, Annie and Rajiv.

So sorry this post is sooo late, but let me say this has been a whirlwind. I will attempt to fill you in over the next few days as we are still attempting to get a schedule down. We arrived in Delhi on Oct. 26th and foolishly believed birth would be immediate. We were there 8 days before the birth at 40 weeks, 1 day. We called Poonam (the attorney) immediately following birth and she had us come in that afternoon (on a holiday) and she filled out all paperwork, submitted it and had an embassy appt. and FRRO apt, in the following 2 days. She had all processes completed within 3 days. Ashton was born on Tues the 4th and our passport appt. was the 6th and we received our emergency passport the same day and our exit visa on that Friday. She is worth every penny!!

We are settling in and over the next few days I will make separate posts about every step of our process in India. We couldn't be happier that Ashton is finally here and we hope this blog inspires others about to begin or currently in the process. God is good and to him we are so thankful. God Bless you all!! TTYS

39 Weeks, 6 Days, and Counting!

We arrived in Delhi on the 26th and we were 38 weeks, 6 days. One week ago. We really expected the baby would be born by now, but, alas, babies come at their own speed. It is rather bizarre though as it is as if we are vacationing here with no real purpose. The three other couples that were in our cohort have had their babies and are speeding down the road to go home and we sit and wait. I will say that my dear friend from Australia, Lorraine, and her husband Peter, have been wonderful about allowing me plenty of cuddles with their gorgeous boy. He is soooooooo adorable!!! He is absolutely perfect. A miracle. He knows Mummy and Daddy and will allow me to hold him, but then he wants to return to the comfort of Mummy or Daddy. I am blessed we were allowed to have such great people to share this journey with. I wish they lived next door.

We are planning to have some photos taken with the babies together if Babykins decides to arrive before college. LOL! The other IP,s that has had photos done here posted them and the photographer is very good. It will be amazing to have photos of them together.

A few tips for those coming behind:

-If you forget a needed medication, the concierge at Hilton can send someone for it as the pharmacy is very close. If you need a doctor, they have one on call that can come to the room.

-We have been hand washing and hanging to dry smaller items, but they take 1-2 days to dry. You can either negotiate laundry into the price of your stay or you can use the laundry mat listed on the SCI forum. It is modern and clean. I would use it for larger items.

-Western snack items are limited, so bring a.supply as it is really comforting. We brought Jif peanut butter, assorted chocolate, jerky, pouches of tuna and canned meat, shelf stable microwave meals which are delicious. Also, we give the waiter a tip at the hotel restaurant daily and he sends us with a bag of fruit, yogurt, banana bread and chi tea. It makes a great afternoon snack.

-You will need to have 3 photocopies of every document to distribute as needed.

-if jet lag affects you, bring a sleep aid of some sort. Staring at the ceiling all night, every night, for days is not fun. I would have given a lot for NyQuil.

- bring sinus medication as the smog really affects the sinuses. If you have asthma, bring medication and stay indoors as much as possible.

-Bring a laptop in lieu of an iPad. The wireless signal is spotty and it is best to plug straight in.

-Buy the SIM card for the phone as soon as you arrive. The concierge will arrange a driver to take you to the shop and he will negotiate the price for you. It takes a few days to activate.

That is all I can think of at the moment. I highly recommend the Hilton. They treat us exceptionally well and price is better than Svelte. Pray Babykins comes soon. We are ready for the next adventure.

38 Weeks, 1 Day and Other Interesting Stuff

We have reached 38 weeks yesterday, YAY!!! One of my friends from our cohort had her baby day before yesterday. She had a girl and she is absolutely precious. We are just so excited and can't wait to meet her baby, and ours!! LOL!!

I finished the last "Waiting for baby" project. The painting of the dining table and refinishing of the top.

 

I am so happy with the results, but I must admit that if I had known how much work it would be, I am not sure I would have started.



Now that all major projects are finished, I now need to pack our bags and make certain we have all supplies we need for the baby. We are taking a portable washer to wash clothes in our room, pre-mixed formula for the plane ride home, and tons of snacks, though I am very worried about whether we will be able to take everything we would like to take in 3 bags.

 

I found a spray we have purchased for use on the plane, called Halo. If used every 6 hours, it is supposed to kills 99.9% of infectious germs. It gets great reviews, so hopefully it works.

 

We are still figuring our final girl name. We have finalized a boy name. We just cannot wait to see Babykins!! Please pray we have a safe trip and that Babykins and surrogate are safe and sound throughout the process. I will post as soon as we receive more info. 

37 Weeks Today!!

Today we have reached 37 weeks and we are soooo excited!!! We received our 36 week scan last Thursday and Babykins went from weighing 3.88 pounds at 32 weeks to 6.5 pounds at 36 weeks. We were shocked at the sudden weight gain, but we are relieved as we were thinking Babykins would be rather small.


We have made a bit of progress on the list of things that need to be done prior to our leaving. I spent last Friday cleaning the entire house, doing laundry, putting things away, etc. I still need to renew our insurance, take care of some business issues and continue packing. Ralph has yet to get the cords and wires behind the Hunt Board hidden from sight. He intends to install some type of box in the wall, behind the television, to accommodate the mess, but I am not certain this will get finished.


I have been craving white birthday cake and so I decided to make a white almond buttercream with almond buttercream frosting. I had a visitor while making the frosting and accidentally put lemon extract in the frosting, instead of almond. It was OK, but I was highly disappointed that I messed it up. I have been giving it away. Guess I didn't need the cake.


One of our friends that are 3 weeks ahead of us with their pregnancy, through SCI, is leaving for India today. I am so excited for them. I can't wait until their baby is born and they post pictures of their adorable angel. It is so nice to see the pics of other IP's and their success stories. It is encouraging and gives all those waiting hope.


We will post more info. as we receive it. Please pray for an Oct. 24 birth. I know we have no say I the matter as mother nature decides, but we can hope and pray. TTYS <3  

36 Weeks, 2 Days

Well, we are just past 36 weeks and it seems as if time has slowed to crawl. Tons of questions and "what ifs" are swirling around in our heads. We are anxiously awaiting the 36 week scan to see how much Babykins weighs. We are hoping Babykins stays put until the 24th as we want him/her to be as healthy and as large as possible, within reason. The day after Dawali would be perfect. For some reason, the 24th keeps sticking in my head. We shall see.


There are so many things to finish before we leave. I started a refurbishing project of our dining table, which includes painting the base and chairs, recovering the seats and staining and varnishing the top. It has been a ton of work and I will be sooooo happy when it is over, but at least it will be finished. I also need to clean the garage floor, do floors in entire house, scrub showers, renew our health insurance, and finish some real estate deals/paperwork. Let the race to the finish line commence.


Hope you are all well. Please pray for a smooth, uneventful birth and travel. Will keep you all updated as we know more.

35 Weeks Tomorrow!!

Well, we are 35 weeks tomorrow and it is hard to believe. We have so many things yet to do. The final major project is painting 8 dining chairs, the table base and recovering the seats. Hopefully, I will get it finished before we leave. Below is a sign in a store that I really loved as it sums up this process so well.

Darling husband installed the baby gate to the door of the nursery and you can see all of the sorted clothes inside. I am waiting until the last minute to pack the actual clothes. If the baby comes before we travel, I can take clothes of the proper gender. We shall see.

I read great reviews about the following. It is called Nose Frida and the reviews are amazing. Apparently it actually removes mucous so baby can rest better. We all know a stuffed baby does not allow much rest for Mommy and Daddy. I do wish baby had been born in Spring or Summer. I hate cold weather and the sick people that insist on running around. We will be staying close to home for a while.

These are some burp cloths I sewed recently. I just sewed some leftover fabric over the center strip of the cloth diaper. I think they turned our quite well.

Well, we will not receive another report until a week from tomorrow, but I will be sure and post as soon as we receive our next report. We are so thankful to God for his blessings!!! TTYS