Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas, All! We had a special Christmas at home this year. Santa brought our family 2 gifts - games to play together - and also filled the boys' stockings. Nate hid the stockings after Santa brought them, so the boys had to find them.

Coop and Miles each got one new toy from us:

After we opened presents, we had a birthday party for Jesus with some super yummy coffee cake. Cooper and Nate blew out the candles.

While we were eating lunch, we noticed a bald eagle circling our house. So cool!

The eagle was very encouraging for me to see. It reminded me of God's promise in Isaiah 40:31

but those who hope in the LORD

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint.

For those of you who do not know, I was diagnosed with MS on December 23rd. That news was heavy on my mind during our holiday celebration, and that eagle soaring over our house was such a neat gift for me. It gave me encouragement!

I'm going to create a new text area on this blog to share specific prayer requests as I journey down this road of having the gift of MS. This blog will most certainly stay focused on our family and the wonderful things Coop and Miles are doing, but I also thought it could prove a quick and easy way to share prayer requests. Thank you all for praying!!

The other morning, I walked in to Cooper's room and said, "Good morning!" and started singing our regular good-morning song. Cooper said, "SHHHHH, Mommy! Humphry and Hank are still sleeping!" He had them up on his pillow in sleeping position. :)

Miles is getting really good at sitting up! I can't believe my baby is getting so big!!

Snowman Nose

Last night at dinner, Coop was having carrots and dip. I heard him say, "Hey Mom, I have a snowman nose!" And he did!

Cooper and Miles met Santa!

Cooper and Miles got to meet Santa yesterday at a Parents as Teachers event. Cooper told me on the way to the event that he wanted to snuggle with Santa, but once we were there he wasn't so sure. We made all the crafts, and Cooper kept staring at Santa and waving at him. This is really the closest he got to Santa, which was closer than I thought he would get!


At one point, Santa was holding Cooper's hand, asking him what he wanted for Christmas. Cooper was asking Santa about his reindeer, and he said, "Will you hold my hand and take me to see them?" It was really sweet! Miles enjoyed sitting on Santa's lap! He really liked his beard...he almost pulled it right off!

Imagination

Cooper and I were playing in his bean pool. Cooper held up a bean to me and said, "Is this a slipper?" It was missing about a forth of the bean, and it really looked like slipper! :)

Naked Baby!

Cooper loves to run around our house when he doesn't have clothes on. This particular morning, he had his Thomas undies and his boots. Nice combo.

This one is for you, Uncle Wade!

Yesterday, Coop was out helping Nate work on the cars. He came inside, and I asked him what he had been doing.

Cooper: Driving.
Me: Oh really? Where were you going?
Cooper: Colby
Me: Really. Who were you going to visit in Colby?
Cooper: Uncle Wade.

I asked Nate when he came in if they had been talking about Uncle Wade, and they hadn't. Coop came up with that all on his own! He loves you, Uncle Wade!!

Fun with Miles

It was bath night and we caught Miles being his happy self.  Most days Miles is all smiles and giggles, with the occasional grunt or scream.  

See ya at lunch!

This post is a bit more personal, but it all adds to several funny stories about Cooper.  

Last night after work, I was in the bathroom.  Cooper came storming in - 'Daddy, where are you?'  After he found me, he quickly turned around and said, 'Bye dad, I'll give you some alone time.'  A few minutes later, as I was changing into some shorts in our closet, back he came at full speed, bursting through our closet door.  When he saw that I was changing, he looked puzzled and asked 'Daddy, are you going back to work?'  Before I had a chance to answer, he said 'see you at lunch!' and bolts out of our room.  

Cooper is learning about his feelings.  Yesterday Cooper had 'time out' for jumping on the couch.  While he was in his room, he kept coming to the door and saying 'I feel frustrated because, because I feel sad!'  

Later in the evening, as it was getting towards Cooper and Miles' bedtime, Miles was a beginning to get a bit fussy.  I asked Cooper if he could go get a pacifier, and when he came back he said 'Miles, which one do you want?'  He held out his hands and he had brought back two, one was blue and the other red.  It was very thoughtful.  

Miles Waking Up

This is precious Miles waking up one morning this week. (Sorry the video is so dark!) He is such a sweet boy when he wakes up in the morning!

Cute Words...

Cooper has done/said some really sweet things lately. Here are some fun stories...

On Friday night, we went to Springfield as a family. It was right around 8:00 p.m., and it had gotten pretty dark out. We went out to the garden center at Lowe's, and Cooper said, "Daddy, what's that black thing?" Nate tried naming any black object he could find. Cooper was not getting the answers that he wanted, and he kept saying, "What's that black thing?" Finally it hit us what he was talking about - the sky! Our son has not really experienced a big, nighttime sky in his recent days. Wow - it was so cool to seem him see the night sky for the first time. He experienced the stars that night, too!

Saturday afternoon, Cooper was swinging, and he said, "It's orange, Mommy!!" I asked him what was orange, and he told me his eyes are orange. I looked at him, and he had his eyelids closed. I closed my eyes, too, and he was right! The sun was shining through our eyelids and making a very nice shade of orange!

Later that night, we had some friends over for dinner. Cooper was doing whatever he could to captivate the crowd. He ate his dinner very quickly and got down to play. I looked over at him, and he was sitting in the chair in the corner with his shirt lifted. He was holding Humphrey up under his shirt. I said, "Whatcha doing, Coop?" He answered, "Feeding Humphrey." Wow - that was embarrassing.

I don't want you to think my lack of stories about Miles lately mean anything. He is the sweetest little guy. Today after church, he started really getting excited about being lifted up in the air. Wow - so cute!! The ladies in the nursery love this little guy! He is so laid back and content. What a gift from the Lord!

Family Photo Shoot

Hello everyone!
I thought I'd share a link of some photos a friend shot of our family this weekend. The primary purpose of the shoot was for Cooper's 2nd birthday, but we mixed in a few other members of the family at times as well. We think they turned out awesome! Keith and Charity did such a great job. Kudos guys!
http://www.w3bolivar.com/lr/bethellbabies/
Nate

Cooper Turns Two!

Coop's 2nd birthday started with tears as Nate and I sang Happy Birthday to him as we walked in his room to get him up. I'm pretty sure he has some confusion on "birthday." I think he thinks "birthday" is a cake. So Happy Birthday just doesn't make sense without the cake. So, to save the moment, we quickly got his presents out.

Here he is with Harold the Helicopter.

When he saw his presents, he quickly pointed to the big box and said, "That's a train track." What? How in the world does our two-year-old know that the big gift is a train track? We really tried to be sneaky on this one. He wasn't even with us when we bought it. So, the surprise was out. I'm sure glad it was train track! I think he would have been disappointed...

Here is Coop's birthday cake! Or just birthday...


Here is the train track. :)


Here are a couple of pictures from his party. Very fun.

One other cute story...at Lisa's house, Lisa told Cooper it was time for a nap. Usually he is very good about going back to his "room" with her to get in bed. But on his birthday, Lisa heard him say, "But it's my birthday..." We're not sure if that meant - "Hey - I can't nap! I haven't had "birthday" (a.k.a. cake) yet!" Or if it meant "Hey - birthday boys shouldn't have to take naps!" Sweet either way. :)

Fun Fam Pics

Laughing with Miles

There is not much new news at the Bethell house this week.  I had a quarterly sales meeting in Missouri which had me away from the house from about 7 am to 9 pm or later every night.  So, we're planning to catch up on some much needed family-time this weekend.  Becky has also joined us for the weekend so we are sure to have a great time (despite the forecasted weekend of rain!!!).  

Miles woke up in a very good mood this morning and we were able to video him giving some giggles.  Unlike most video experiences, this was one of the first times we'd heard him giggle so we were excited to have the camera handy.  

Nate had been very busy in Sales Meetings the past two evenings, so the boys and I have had our evenings together. Here are a few pictures of play time.

Aunt Hanna and Mr. Jerry

Today we had two very special visitors. Hanna and Jeremiah were on their way back from an extended weekend vacation at Lake of the Ozarks and took the short detour to stop by for a few hours. It had been several years since Jeremiah had been to the house so it was great to have him and Hanna back.

While they weren't at the house very long, the boys enjoyed spending a few hours with them. This was Miles' first visit with Hanna and Jeremiah so it was great to get to introduce him as the new member of the family. Cooper immediately took to Jeremiah and somehow came up with the name Mr. Jerry... Despite our continuing to reinforce 'Uncle Jeremiah', Uncle Jerry stuck in his little mind. So, whether or not Jeremiah likes it, I think it's going to stick! Sorry in advance brother!

On Friday, Cooper went to school for the first time! We signed him up for B.U.M. kids this year so that I could have one morning a week alone with Miles. (B.U.M. kids is Bolivar United Methodist kids - it is like Mom's Morning.) So at breakfast on Friday, we told Cooper that he was going to go someplace very special that day! B.U.M. Kids!! He said, "Yeah! I bump kids heads!" Hmm....not exactly. So I guess we'll call it "school" just in case. :)

He did great! The teachers said he did very well, especially for his first day! His friends Mya, Sol, and Cale are all there with him, so he is with a few familiar faces. He didn't want to leave when I picked him up! He is a big boy!

The next milestone for Cooper came when I picked him up from Lisa's house and he was playing Candyland with Lisa and Sol. Wow! I couldn't believe it! Candyland! What a grown-up boy!

On Saturday, Nate and I took the plunge and left the boys with the Tweedy family for the entire day. We headed for Branson and left the boys from around 8:00 a.m. until about 6:00 p.m. We had a very fun shopping day without kids. We kept hearing little ones crying or whining, and it wasn't ours!! It was very fun. Cooper and Miles had a great day with Laura, Janet, Craig, and Brent. They love the Tweedy family! :)

Comparison

Here is our latest comparison picture. Who is who?

1.

2.

This Week In Pictures

This has been a big and exciting week in the Bethell family:
1. Mom and Dad came for a short, one-day visit on Sunday
2. Carey went back to work
3. Carey went back to work
4. Carey went back to work (you get the picture)

We've decided to post several pictures to summarize the week. One fun story not captured in pictures was tonight at dinner - Cooper saw a squirrel outside the window and said 'Look, a squirrel is driving by'. =) And by the looks of Miles in his chair, if he could talk, he would say 'Feed me...'. Needless to say, the doctor is not concerned about his weight. The boy loves to eat.

Pool Time

Miles and Cooper have been doing so many fun things. Miles is growing bigger and bigger, 'talking' more everyday and becoming more expressive. Throughout the day and at Cooper's bedtime, we've been reading together as a family and Miles gets so excited looking at the pictures and listening to the story. The video is of Miles cooing and making some other fun noises.



While Miles seems to be growing so fast and changing everyday, Cooper's vocabulary is exploding. It seems that everyday he is coming up with new phrases and using his imagination to tell funny stories. Here are a few of the things he has said in the last few days:
1. He was playing with his Thomas trains on the floor and had a lot of them connected (via their magnets). He lifted one end up and the other was hanging below and he exclaimed - 'I caught a fish!'
2. Carey and Cooper were playing outside and Cooper found a pinto bean in his tractor. (It was left over from playing with his tractor in his pool of beans.) He had his milk cup with him outside, and he set the bean right by his cup and said, "Here, Bean. Here's your milk."
3. Keeping with the milk theme, if he has his milk cup in or out of the house, he has to have a coaster under his cup. We were out in the grass and we looked over and he had found a flat rock to put his cup on - way to save the dirt from sweat rings!
4. For those of you who know about his love of Cookie Monster, he calls him 'Cookie TaTa' for some reason. In the past, he has always been able to say Cookie and Monster, but when he puts them together they have been Cookie TaTa. Well, as of tonight, Cookie TaTa is no more. We were eating dinner and he looked at his food mat and said - 'What's Elmo doing with Cookie Monster?' - our little man is growing up!

The boys enjoyed the cooler weather today by spending a little time outside.

I forgot one of the cutest things Coop said. He was trying to get his daddy to watch him do something, and he said, "Watch, Daddy" several times. Finally, after growing a bit impatient, Cooper looked at him and said, "Watch, Nate Bethell!" Nate and I both dropped our jaws. We knew that Cooper knew Daddy's name was Nate, but we didn't know about the Bethell. And then to use is like that to demand his attention - wow. Too funny.

Talking

Cooper says things every day that need to be written down. He is at such a fun stage! Yesterday, I was listing out some things for my mom that I thought were blog-worthy.

• Cooper was pushing a button on the laptop (a known no-no), so I said, "Cooper, go to your room for time out." He drooped his shoulders and said, "Cooper, bad choice."
• Cooper uses "um" a lot when we ask him questions. I think this is especially funny when he is having trouble going to sleep at night. I'll hear him crying/getting upset in his bed. When I go in to check on him, I'll ask him what's wrong. He'll answer, "Um...(long pause to think of the need that is causing him to cry) water."
• Cooper says, "Right back." Obviously he has heard this one several times in his life. The conversation usually goes something like this. "Train track, okay?" "Okay, Buddy. Let's play with your train track. Do you want to go get it?" "Right back!"
• Cooper heard me say "Dang, Miles!" after a large diaper filling. Now, out of the blue, he'll say "Dang, Miles!" Man, I wish I hadn't said that...

Travel Fun

While Nate was on the road last week, Cooper said some really cute things. I feel like his language really took off while Nate was gone! He said this sentence: "Uncle Wade has a tractor on his shirt." That one impressed me. :)

One evening, Cooper asked me for "three jumps." Cooper often asks Nate for "three jumps," and I guess I was deemed an appropriate substitute. It was very clear that while I gave the three jumps that I was not getting the job done. After we were finished, Cooper looked at me and said, "Big Swing!" I laid down on the floor, and Cooper said, "I'm tired." I guess he's heard that from me before...

The next night, I was on my cell phone with Nate. When I hung up, Cooper took the cell phone, and he said, "Hi, Daddy. This is Carey." Then, he lifted his shirt in an attempt to clip the phone to his belt - just like Daddy does. After Nate got home, he started saying, "Hi Carey, this is Nate," on the phone. Pretty cute!

Cooper and Miles kind of looked alike today, so here is a picture of their matching outfits:

2 Months Old!

Miles had his Two Month check up today. Dr. Harris (who is usually running pretty close to right on schedule) was really, really late. So, we were at the dr.'s office almost 2 hours - ugh. Miles did really well! And of course, they saved the shots to the very end of the appt. so they didn't have to listen to a crying baby. Poor little guy.

Tonight he had several good smiles, even after the torture we put him through. For you numbers people, Miles weighed 14 lbs, 1 oz (95th to 97th precentile) and measured 25 inches (off the chart percentile). I guess we Bethells raise us some big-o-kids. He is officially bigger than Coop was at this age...and we thought he was big!

Speaking of Cooper, he had a few funny quotes tonight. Nate bought a double jogging strolelr off ebay and we received it from UPS today. When Nate was opening it up in the living room (big cardboard box), Cooper was so excited when he looked inside he exclaimed 'oh my goodness!'. Another funny one was when Nate was getting him ready for bed and got out his 'tractor' jammies. When Nate said 'Cooper - do you see the cool tractor on your shirt?' he promptly said 'actually, digger.'

The Brothers...

Several people have asked us recently if Miles looks like Cooper. We think so! But to prove it to ourselves, we tried to take a picture of Miles that would look similar to a picture we had of Cooper. We were actually surprised at the differences we can see in this picture! So here they are, in random order:

Can you tell who is who?

Florida

Believe it or not, we just returned home from vacation in Florida with our 22-month and 7-week old boys. Before you think we are too crazy, this trip was well in the works when Miles was just a twinkle in our eyes. Once we knew about Miles coming to join our family, we decided we would brave it and try to do the family vacation with him. And I tell you what, all things considered, we were blessed with little miracles all along the way that made the vacation well worth it! God is so good!

In general, I would tell people that it is not wise to travel with little ones. However, with amazing family members to help, we had a good trip!

Cooper enjoyed the water and the sand. When he first went over the hill and saw the ocean, his jaw dropped. He was in awe. It was very cute. He enjoyed the water and the sand very much!















Miles didn't have much time on the beach. He did, however, have one bath in the swimming pool and one bath in a salad bowl. I think he was pretty concerned about the experience...












And as it turns out, yes, we are crazy.

Lunch Time Sing-A-Long

Over the past few days, Cooper has blessed us with some great video. Today over lunch, we captured pieces of 'old Macdonald had a farm' and the Veggie Tales theme song. Without further a due...

4th of July Weekend

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. Nate had Friday off so we were able to spend a three-day weekend together at home. I don't even think we left Bolivar - it was wonderful to be all together without much of a schedule or 'to do' list.

Cooper experienced his first real fire crackers. We thought, prior to the big display in the evening, we'd purchase a few small fire crackers to light off at the house to see how things go. The fireworks in the evening are very loud so we thought a few small ones would be a good indication of how things would go. Evidently we chose the wrong place to buy fireworks because it seems the first several we tried didn't work. However, when we did find one that worked, it wasn't pretty. He watched as the tank drove around but then when it finally stopped and gave a light crack, he cried like there was no tomorrow. We have video but thought it wouldn't be quite right to post it - it's so sad! Needless to say, Cooper and Miles went to bed BEFORE the evening display.

We spent much of Sunday enjoying the Wimbledon finals, swinging in the back yard, taking a few family walks, etc. Cooper became pretty talkative on Sunday afternoon so we were able to catch him counting and saying the alphabet. You may have to listen closely as he wasn't especially loud. The occasional '1,2,3 Blastoff!' gives an extra touch...

Miles isn't talking, running marathons, etc. yet, but we thought we'd post a short video of him looking around, doing the 6-week-old thing.

Smiles

One of the best rewards of being a dad is experiencing smiles from our children. Miles seems to have known just what we needed this week as he gave us his first big cheese. Granted, his smiles are potential coincidences, but we will take what we can get. It's amazing to think that Miles is now six weeks old and growing like crazy. I believe he has gained nearly one pound every week and seems to have grown several inches as well. I'm not sure this is the case, but he is really getting big. When I returned from New Jersey earlier this week, it was like coming home to two new boys.

With the extended holiday weekend, our family is staying in town and keeping a pretty low-key weekend. So far we've spent been in the garden, played ping-pong, baked brownies and have spent several hours in Coopers new swing in the backyard. SBU hosts the city fireworks every year and we have a great view from our front yard. While we will probably end up at home to watch the show, we do plan to walk over and eat dinner, (or homeade icecream!) socialize and enjoy our friends who will join us.

Happy 4th of July!

The Daily Grind

If you're checking regularly, you've noticed we haven't blogged for several days. I think if we had to label the past few days, it would read...survival. We are so blessed to have two little boys who have been so healthy. But, poor little Miles is just not a healthy sleeper! With my going back to work full time and Carey adjusting to being home, it's been a bit of a circus. But, the good news is, Carey is able to get some rest in the afternoon and we have a wonderful friend who is taking Cooper in the afternoons a few times a week to assist in the adjustment.

My travel will begin picking up again in the next few weeks and the schedule is already getting pretty full. In the next six or so weeks, I will likely be in Texas, Connecticut, Oregon, Washington and Idaho. This will be another adjustment for our family so please keep our family in your prayers.

Last weekend, Dave and Beth came down for a quick, weekend visit. It was great to spend more time with family and we had a nice weekend to spend plenty of time outside. With Grandpa H and Bugs came some new bubbles - a favorite of Cooper's outdoor activities.

The end of vacation is near

It's now been nearly two weeks since the arrival of baby Miles.

On Saturday, the Colby Bethells (mom, dad and Lauren) arrived in Bolivar and have spent the last couple days with us. We've had a great time and have enjoyed the company. Cooper has especially enjoyed playing with Aunt Lauren. She has the teenage energy to keep up with him, but I think even Lauren is getting a bit tired. Mom and Dad decided to bring a tent to sleep in to keep the living room a little less busy. Cooper, in turn, loves the tent and bouncing around on the air mattresses has been a highlight. Grandpa has threatened to have Cooper stay the night in the tent, but we decided we'd wait for a day when Grandpa and Grandma can have him for the entire day after...

It has rained much of the night and I believe it's scheduled to continue for the next few days. So, we've decided to have a ping-pong tourney in the garage to compensate for the rainy weather outside. To ensure the bracket is fair and I have good shot at winning, I think I will match up against Cooper in round 1.

The girls, plus Miles, are headed to The Tea Garden for lunch and the boys are headed to El Rodeo for a more manly lunch. For those who don't know the Tea Garden, if you don't have pink or flowers in your 'outfit', it's not the place for you. I personally enjoy eating there, but the few times I have, I'm generally the only guy in the place.

Tomorrow brings another change for the Bethell family - I go back to the office. I've been working off and on, but I need to get back full-time. Carey and I have been experimenting with different ways to manage the babies while alone, but tomorrow will be the real test. Please continue to pray for an easy transition for both of us, as it's been great to be together during the days and nights.

Saddle Up

With most pregnant mums, I believe the 'nesting' phase usually happens prior to delivery of the new baby. Maybe it's the fact that our house is usually pretty clean, or that Miles came a bit early, but Carey has officially began to 'nest'. For Carey, it's really about cleaning. It's purging. While I wouldn't call Carey a collector, throwing things away just hasn't been her style. For me, I usually throw first, ask questions later. However, with Carey's latest phase of organizing and purging, I have even found myself saying 'are you sure you want to throw that away?'. Needless to say, the house and insides of every cabinet are sparkling. But that leads to a funny story.

While cleaning some of the lower cabinets in the kitchen, Carey was, hands and knees on the floor, calculating what was next. However, Cooper was one step ahead. Lately, Cooper recognizes anyone on the floor as a potential riding object and climbs on. So in this case, he runs over to the unsuspecting Carey (and does so with tractors in each hand), jumps on her back and proudly yells "COWBOY!". While we have given many pony rides around the house, this was a first. After his announcement, he quickly jumped off and turned to playing tractors in the living room. This will be a fun memory we share in the near term...but I'm sure many more will soon replace it!

Dancing to the Alphabet

It seems the video camera is never in the right place at the right time. However, we did catch a brief moment, no pun intended, with Cooper dancing to his 'Fridge Phonics' alphabet set. It's a short clip, but this is a glimpse of life with our little dancing bean.

It's been a few days since our last post so here is an update on the family.

Maggie - our 4-year-old Bulldog baby has an ear infection. Unlike the controversy on treating ear infections in our human babies, Maggie gets drugs for hers (for anyone who cares, her's is bacterial). It's truly amazing what we spend to keep all 50 pounds of her snore-like-a-freight-train-while-I'm-sleeping healthy. Other than the ear infection, she spends most of her time sleeping on the cold tile, air conditioning vent or taking in the sun on the back deck.

Cooper - Our surfer-hair 20 month old seems to be taking the new baby addition in strides. I think he finally has the concept that baby Miles is here to stay. So far, he has been pretty tender-hearted with Miles and is ready to show Miles how his toys, especially his trains (Thomas the Train trains in particular), work. To help ease the transition of Carey spending a lot of time with Miles during his regular feedings, Carey has several special bags of toys / activities just for feeding times (thanks Becky and Jenn for the contents of the bags). When we are not all together as a family, Cooper an I are either playing trains, playing tractors, going for walks on his tricycle, or playing golf. Cooper woke up this morning begging to go to the golf course, ride in the cart and see Charlie, one of the local homeowner’s dogs who walks the course looking for golfers to give a bit of affection. Charlie, the lawn mowers, and the many airplanes the take off and land near by are the highlight of the golf course trips.

Miles – Life seems to be pretty good for this little man. He’s coming on seven days old and is on a pretty good eating and sleeping schedule. Right now, we are generally getting up two times a night as he is sleeping an average of about four hours between feedings. During the day, he seems to have a bit of trouble staying awake. We are amazed that he sleeps at night considering the sleep he gets during the day. Every day we see more of his eyes; I think odds are pretty high for really dark eyes.

Carey and Nate – we both seem to be doing pretty well. With all of our guests gone, we are finding our own schedules with the boys, figuring out what works and what doesn’t. For once in the past several years, we can sleep in past 5am! We’ve been waking up just before Cooper and Miles get up at 7am to ensure we get plenty of rest. Speaking of rest, Carey has been pretty rest-less during the day. She has been feeling so great she’s ready to tackle all kinds of projects in and out of the house. For those who know Carey, this probably doesn’t surprise you. It may not also surprise you to know that she is only a few pounds away from her pre-pregnancy weight. I guess all that walking has paid off – I’ve calculated that Carey walked nearly 1000 miles during this pregnancy. She’s amazing.

Coming Home

Greetings from our home!

Yesterday, Carey and I spent the day at the hospital with Miles resting and doing all the final health checks, etc. Everyone is doing very well, so well in fact that I am writing from my living room with Carey and Miles on the couch! It's such a great blessing to be home with the entire family. When we carried Miles in from the car in his car-seat, I set him down on the floor and Cooper immediately came over to 'rock baby miles'. I think he's still trying to figure out what Miles is and how long he's going to be at the house, but he has been so gentle and caring. One of our biggest prayers right now is that our family can make the right adjustments to having two children; please continue to pray for us as Cooper and his parents manage the changes!

Becky, Carey's mother, will spend the next several days with us and we are very grateful. We also have a number of planned guests who will come and visit over the next couple weeks and we are excited to introduce the new member of the family. While in the hospital and now at the house, we have been overwhelmed with friends and family. It's wonderful to be surrounded by people who love us and care about us.

Thanks to all who support and continue to pray for us.

Wednesday Morning Surprise!

As it happens, the old stork visited the Bethell family early this morning. While not unexpected, it was a rather exciting, event-filled five-hour labor to bring Miles Henry Bethell into the world. Carey was such a champ.

Here are the stats on Miles:
Weight - 7lb 11oz
Length - 20in
Time of Birth - 5:46 AM