Josh & Lila Dodson

Goodbye means See you Later

2010-03-16T21:06:00.007-04:00

Today has been a very hard day! I had to say goodbye to the LOVE of my LIFE for 4 whole months. Josh left this afternoon to go to Texas, where he will be in Basic Training until July 9th. We have had a few glorious days before he left. We tried to make the very most of our time together. We took Wesley on walks, we had dinners together, we had good conversations. We talked about names for our Baby GIRL, whose expected arrival is July 27th and no sooner, as we all want her Daddy to be present when she makes her grand Pink entrance! We talked about Wesley and all he is doing and will do in the upcoming months. We told each other how much we love one another, over and over, but a million times wasn't enough.

*30 minute interlude in which i was startled by a cry from the nursery, to go and find my baby boy wet and in need of new pajamas, a new diaper, much snuggling and reassurance, some milk, new sheets, and finally his teddy bear...*

Anyway, it has been a long day. There will be several of those to come, but GOD has provided MANY family members and friends who have all offered their help, and i fully intend to ask for it when i need it! Lord, my prayer is for Josh now as he is "landing" in Texas, that you would keep him healthy and strong to endure the weeks ahead of him. I give him up into your strong, able, and willing hands, he is YOURS, amen.

Cheerios!

2010-01-24T05:44:00.001-05:00

What more can i say...this kid is just

PRECIOUS!!! And his Daddy takes SUCH

good care of him while i am at work! :)

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If we Call the New Baby Peanut....

2009-12-30T21:25:00.004-05:00

SOooooo, it's been quite a while since I have posted anything. I guess that's what working a full-time job and having a full-time 8 month old will do to a gal! :) We had a very blessed and wonderful Christmas month...we have traveled all around and seen all of the family, with still more fun to be had this weekend over New Years.

Wesley is growing so quickly! He brings so much JOY and delight into our home. He always wakes up with a beautiful smile and gives warm greetings. He is very active crawling, pulling up, and even inching around the edges of whatever he can get his hands on. Having focused on his locomotion, he now seems to be turning his attention to cutting some teeth. Despite my singing to him "All i want for Christmas is my two from teeth", he has not quite cut one yet :)

In other news, we are expecting the Joyful arrival of precious Baby #2 around July 27th! We had our first visit to the doctor on Monday the 28th, and got to see a strong heartbeat, and all seems well. SO if we nickname this one the Little Peanut, then i guess that makes me the Nut Hut! =)

Despite being a slight shade of green with morning sickness (which usually lasts well into the evening), i am doing well. having just completed working 6 shifts in the past 7 days, i am looking forward to some much needed HAIR SALON time tomorrow morning :)

Josh is anxiously awaiting final word from the College of Nursing, and expects to hear from them sometime in February or March. He is still on track to go to Basic training in March. With scheduled return in early July, hopefully BEFORE the Little Peanut makes his or her appearance! Nursing school should then start in late August if all goes according to our plan and the Lord sees fit! :)

We are blessed beyond measure, and just cannot put into words how grateful we are to our friends and family who keep on lovin on us in so many ways! We love you all and wish you a very happy new year! :)

love,

Josh, Lila, Wesley, & Little Peanut

Air Force Reserves

2009-10-08T20:11:00.009-04:00

We are officially an Air Force family now! As of Tuesday, Oct. 6th, Josh (and therefore me and Wesley) are property of Uncle Sam. When asked why he did it, Josh replied, "Well, I enlisted for the benefits. I plan to go to nursing school. I am also proud to serve my country, just like my Dad and generations before me did." YEP, he's proud! :) As you can see, Wesley was perfectly patriotic in his denim and red, white, and blue. (I was actually sleep walking because I had worked the previous four night-shifts!) So here are some pics to share...

Waiting...

Signing...

OOoooo...AAAaaaa!!!

Josh's group was actually the first to swear in

at this base, on a plane :)

hey look, it's bring your kid to work day! ;)

And some more funness....

Here's Wesley doin his latest...

rockin & kissin!

SO PRECIOUS! :)

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Wesley's First Word?

2009-09-28T08:00:00.005-04:00

Greetings! We here at the Dodson home are moving right along with life! Josh has applied to Nursing school at MUSC for August 2010, and is awaiting acceptance. He is also in the final stages of enlisting in the Air Force Reserves, and plans to swear in on October 10th. God is SO good to be continually working out His good and perfect will in our lives, we are very blessed!!

Our "little" Wesley is really moving right along..literally! He is starting to creep :) He can tuck his legs up under his belly, and almost get up on all fours. Watch out world...we are about to be MOBILE! He also seems to be beginning to mumble a few very special words!!! Wesley loves meal time, and is looking forward to fresh vegetables coming from the Farm starting this week.

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5 months old!

2009-09-23T16:49:00.000-04:00

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Catch-up!!

2009-09-17T20:29:00.003-04:00

So since it's been so long since i've posted anything.....here's catch-up.

it's in no particular order, and i tried to include most things since i last posted!

i'll try to be better at posting!

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Seriously?

2009-09-17T14:03:00.012-04:00

Was it really 13 weeks ago that i last wrote!?? SHEESH time has FLOWN by! This week Wesley is 20 weeks old!! we have been having so much fun with so many new adventures...i just do not even know where to begin! we have had wonderful visits from family and friends. wesley is sleeping through the night like a champ (he started that at 7 weeks!) {i give "Baby Wise" ALL the credit for that!!}. i have gone back to work (did that when he was 11 weeks old, it's been an ok transition). josh has decided to work towards earning a nursing degree (more on this later!). wesley can roll over, do a 360 on his tummy, give kisses (almost on demand, or, well, whenever he wants to, and it's open-mouthed with drool :) furthermore....drum roll please...we've started solid foods!!! =) which, is the main topic of my bloggin' today! we're doin' it home-style..boys love their Mama's home cookin', right!? THIS baby boy sure does!! This week we introduced Sweet Potatoes and Butternut squash, that i baked and prep'd myself! (it really wasn't that hard or very time consuming, and it is very rewarding to be able to say i did it myself!) Wesley really likes his food now! he opens wide and leans in to his spoonful..we are SO PROUD!

It all started with these little guys...

Cut & de-seeded ;)

Mashed with LOVE

Jars & ice cubes

Frozen & ready

i promise, he likes it!

The Little Prince in his new Throne!

7 weeks old!

2009-06-09T15:34:00.012-04:00

Has it really been SEVEN weeks since this wonderful little being entered our lives!? Wow that is hard to believe..in some ways..in others not. It is hard to believe that he was only 6 pounds 13 ounces when he was born, and now he's so big and squishy! Hard to believe that I have been home with him for 7 weeks. But it is NOT hard to believe when i look in the mirror and see the dark bags under my eyes. Or when i'm up at 3am to feed him, having only slept for 2 hours. Yeah, i guess it's been 7 weeks!

It has been a GREAT seven weeks! We have gotten to do so many fun things! Last post we had traveled to York to visit friends. The following weekend we went to the beach at Debordieu. And all in-between we have enjoyed small outings with friends! So here are some pictures and a video of what we have been up to lately!

Nap Time, most important time of the day!

A Walk in the Park

Just hanging out

Just a swingin

Wesley with his Uncle Zack

Some guy time on the porch

Uncle Jon & Aunt Erin with Wesley

His first time at the beach,

it was a big splash! :)

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Memorable Memorial Weekend

2009-05-25T13:25:00.002-04:00

This past weekend was wonderful! We packed up the car and headed out of town..for the first time..with a 4 week-old! We left on Friday evening and went to Winnsboro. So Wesley got to spend the night at his Mimi & Papa T's house for the first time. And he also got to test out his pack-and-play for the first time (it worked really well!) Saturday we slept in and played around the house until the afternoon. Then we headed up to York, SC to visit my friends from college who were getting together for Dave's birthday. It was so WONDERFUL to get together with good friends, who I do not get to see very often. We almost all have babies now, so it was fun to swap stories, learn tricks, and coo over each other's babies! :) Saturday night we went back to Winnsboro, so Sunday we got to spend some more QT with Mimi & Papa T. We did not visit the 30 goats out back this time, but will introduce Wesley to them sometime soon ;) Here are the pics! Love you all.

1 month old!

2009-05-19T16:52:00.006-04:00

Wesley is 4 weeks old today, WOW! He is doing great :) We went to the pediatrician this morning, and he got a good report. He is gaining weight very well (2 ounces per day almost, when a minimum of 1 ounce per day was the goal..hooray mommy's milk!). When I picked him up this morning, I told Wesley that I think he grew another chin over night!! ;) He is just the most precious little blessing ever, we love him SO MUCH!

This past weekend we had some more visitors. Josh's mom (aka Mimi), his step-dad Herb (aka PapaT), and josh's grandparents (Grandmama & Grandpapa) all came down to visit little Wesley. We had a lovely time, and even got to enjoy a yummie steak dinner! (Wesley says thanks again guys!!!)

The whole gang!

Mimi topping Wesley off!

Wesley looks forward to going to flea markets

and yardsales with Grandpapa some day!

The men cooking our steaks,

in the RAIN!

Wesley looks forward to riding

tractors with PapaT someday!

Wesley looks forward to Grandmama teaching him

how to use Facebook someday ;)

hiccups

2009-05-14T11:30:00.008-04:00

well it has been way too long since we have posted anything...who knew a baby could be so all time consuming!? (i know, i know, you all knew that...i just had to learn that!) we are doing really well! wesley is growing and gets cuter every day. here is a video (gettin fancy!), and a few of many recent pics :)

ENJOY, because we sure are!! :)

josh's first time feeding, wesley's first bottle, fresh squeezed! :)

beautiful baby boy!

sweet sunny days

precious

we love the "sleepy wrap"!

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

2009-05-05T12:08:00.006-04:00

Wesley is 2 weeks old today! WOW time has flown by already! He is just so precious, and we love him so very much :) Each day he develops more and more personality, and funny faces. He is eating well and growing well. Yesterday at the pediatrician he weighed 7# 6oz. That's a gain of 14oz. in a week! Praise the Lord for such a beautiful healthy baby. We have enjoyed visits from family and friends. Josh is still studying hard, and will return to work tomorrow. Thank you for your calls and notes of encouragement, we are very grateful :)Enjoy the latest pictures!

Wesley Monroe Dodson

2009-04-30T17:03:00.003-04:00

On April 21, 2009 at 9:28am we welcomed our little Wesley into this world! We are thrilled and excited to introduce you to him through these (many) pictures! The week since his birth has absolutely flown by and really has been great! We have had many visitors, few hours of sleep, and many joy-filled times just looking at him. Pictures, of course, do not do all of the time justice, but we hope you can get a good idea of how precious he is! I do plan to post the "birth story" some day soon, but for now i'll just say that it went very well, and God is GOOD! Enjoy the photos, and we'll post more soon!

Wesley's New Friend, Isaac

2009-04-19T20:32:00.007-04:00

Today after church we enjoyed a beautiful picnic in the park with our new friends Chad, Julie, & Isaac. The weather was beautiful (i even got a little pink from the sun, love it!). We enjoyed getting to know Chad and Julie a little better. The guys talked about deep theological things, and the ladies, of course, talked about baby things!! We are so grateful for Christian friends and fellowship :) I actually took care of Isaac at work in the nursery, because he was born a little premature, so that is how we first met the McKinnon's. We are excited to have new friends, and look forward to many play-dates in the future!

38 weeks...remembering Shurley

2009-04-15T18:48:00.006-04:00

What a wonderful week...Spring is in the Air (along with the pollen everywhere!), the flowers and blooming all around, and our "little bean" is still growing big and strong. Praise the Lord for bringing us this far!!

This T-shirt is a hand-me-down from Carly. I made this shirt for her when she was expecting her first baby, Karis. The story behind the shirt is that when we were in college, 4 of us lived in a house on Shurley Street, and became known as The Shurley Girls. So I made T-shirts for all of us "Aunt Shurley" ladies when Carly was going to have her baby. So now the tradition continues...

Little Wesley, captured on footage ;)

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T14:57:00.009-04:00

Happy Easter everyone! We have had beautiful weather, and enjoyed precious time together. On Saturday we made a trip to Babies R Us and Target for a few more items for the nursery. Then while Josh mowed the lawn (he's the BEST!), I baked an Easter bunny cake (special Costa Rican carrotcake, SO YUMMIE!). Then we went on what we believe may be our last fancy dinner date for a while...we went to Middleton Plantation. (Which, as you may recall, is our special place where we went on our last date before Josh went to Germany to study, and also where we spent the first night of our honeymoon!) So this visit was like our babymoon :) We spent a little while walking around the grounds, and then enjoyed a nice dinner. Yesterday I experienced a few more of the types of contractions that I have already been having, plus one BIG one...so it seems like there's some motion in the ocean! We do have a doctors visit tomorrow, so we will keep you posted if there is any news :)

At Middleton Plantation

Josh had she crab as an appetizer,

who knew you could eat the whole thing!!? FUN!

Today we enjoyed a wonderful Easter lunch with our neighbors,

The Blockers. Here are Andy and Gran :)

Christ is Risen!!

Happy Easter :)

ROCK ON!!!!

2009-04-09T20:40:00.007-04:00

Josh assembled the wonderful rocker glider that Tammy & Herb gave us!!

It is Super comfortable!

...and looks GREAT in the nursery!!!

Carseat practice :)

My dear friend Jennifer Neelands came to visit,

this summer she will leave for Kenya

to teach school for 2 years!!

She's so COOL!!! :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!

2009-04-02T18:42:00.005-04:00

Merry Christmas to meeeeee!!!!!!!!!

Today Josh treated me to a super amazing, absolutely wonderful prenatal massage! (he actually gave me the gift certificate for Christmas, but i've been saving it up for just the right moment).

The table was great, it had a special belly groove,

so i could lay on my tummy!

Haven't done that in MONTHS!

SHEER JOY!

He really, truly IS the

Sweetest One! :)

Thank you honey!!!!!!!!!!!!

Little Bean's Sweet Shower Weekend

2009-03-30T07:46:00.018-04:00

This past weekend was wonderfully busy! We went to Winnsboro for our baby shower hosted by Josh's Mom, Tammy. It was a great time of friends and fellowship. We enjoyed quick but sweet time with family, and were once again overwhelmingly blessed by the generosity of others. We are tremendously grateful for the abundance showered on us by our families and the women of Crooked Run Church!!

The Beautiful "Bean" cake to match the invitations!

We enjoyed such yummie food :)

Beautiful women!

Cute...cute....cute!

Hunter green baby crocks!

The women were amazed by our "modern" cloth diapers!!!!!

They each had a fun story of how it was when THEY used pins and folded :)

See how EASY it is...SNAPS :)

Outfit to match the theme: "Peas on Earth", so cute!

Gerber, baby!

So sweet

To continue the creative "Little Bean" theme, Tammy made the cutest

"Bean Bags" as thank you gifts!!

After the shower we had the chance to go out to dinner with David & Tree and Josh's brothers! Little Bean's grandparents came all the way down from Virginia for the shower!!! How wonderful! It was a super fast visit, but a very sweet time :)

Here we grow....

We attended our final childbirth class on Sunday afternoon. We had the opportunity to walk a labyrinth. The journey, as lead by Josh, took me around turns and through long walks, which brought us to the center..where we got to meet our Baby!!!!! As I rounded each corner I got more and more excited. Josh encouraged me to keep breathing and coached me through the hardest parts near the end (tough contractions, etc.) When we arrived in the middle I nearly cried with PURE JOY at the thought of seeing our sweet baby and hearing him cry for the first time!!!! The journey back out, as lead by me, was to represent our entrance into parenthood and the walk through Wesley's growing up. It was all such a neat metaphor for how the Lord will guide Josh and me through raising Wesley in His ways!

And after a 5-hour long childbirthing class, what better to do than enjoy a YUMMIE meal with My Dad!!!! :) Grandaddy Ed came to town on Sunday evening and met us downtown for a special supper. Conversation was fun as we talked about how big my belly is getting, and felt and watched Little Bean swimming around in there with my scrumptious flounder dinner :)

Thank you ALL for a Fantastic weekend!!!!!

35 weeks..catch up!

2009-03-24T18:38:00.018-04:00

Oh wow oh wow...where to begin! We are 35 weeks in to the pregnancy this week, and it is REALLY beginning to sink in that SOON we are going to have a BABY! We are, of course, excited and anxious all at the same time. We are looking forward to meeting this little man! Josh and I have tried to be intentional about spending as much quality time together as we can, realizing that things are about to change! So today we took lunch to the park :)

This is my..oh my goodness, is he really going to only put on weight for the next 5 weeks, face.

My handy husband put up the clothesline AND the curtain rods, yeppieee!

On March 14th the wonderful women from work had a lovely baby shower for us. Kim and Deanna were beautiful hostesses, and the shower was a HUGE blessing! We were given SO MANY amazing gifts and just could not thank everyone enough! The food was awesome (especially my favorite, the fruit pizza), the company was wonderful, and the blessings abundant! Josh & I (and Little Bean) are tremendously thankful to the girls from the nursery!

Thank YOU ALL!

As a game, they all had to put paper plates on their heads and draw what they think Wesley will look like...

It was SO FUNNY!!! And hard to choose a winner! I also found it interesting that everyone gave him curly hair...humm...had never thought of that!!!!!! FUN!

Their "group gift" was our whole travel system! stroller + carseat + base

WOW LADIES!!!!! Thank you :)

.....and this is what Josh did while I enjoyed the baby shower....

Josh had a lovely time skiing and vacationing in Colorado with friends :)

Thanks for keeping up with us and in touch with us. We appreciate your love, prayers, and encouragement!! We love you all very much :)

J&L&W

Wonderful Women in our Church

2009-03-01T18:22:00.009-05:00

The last I heard, there are 11 women in our church who are currently pregnant, plus three who just delivered - and one was a set of triplets!!! God is showing Himself to be VERY faithful amongst us! The women of Redeemer Presbyterian are absolutely amazing. They have welcomed me for nearly 7 years now! They embraced Josh & me as a couple with open arms. And now they have lavishly showered us with prayer, encouragement, love, and pointers as we prepare to welcome our baby Wesley into the covenant family.

The Redeemer showers are not your typical baby showers. They have a different twist. They seek to bestow upon the mother-to-be warm words of encouragement, wisdom, and warnings as well. They include a time of open sharing in which any woman present is welcome to share advice, tips, tools, or even a funny story. Another special part of the shower that happens quietly during the time together is that a little journal is passed around and the women write their thoughts and wisdom in their words that they later share out loud. Along with the insight comes a basket full of anonymous gifts, so sweet! I just love these women!

I was just thinking today how very special it is that the Lord has coordinated His perfect timing in each of our lives to bring this group of women together. How neat that there are so many covenant children who will all be born so close together. And what a great opportunity for the women in our church to be united by such CUTE little beings and common life-changing events! Praise the Lord :)

The beautiful cake, it was scrumptious!

Lee, Me, & Laura

Me, Beth, & Alla

"There is nothing more amazing & beautiful than seeing your lives duplicated in the life of your child; seeing yourself will take you to new heights as well as depths than you ever thought possible" Kathy Bailey

30 WEEKS!

2009-02-16T21:09:00.003-05:00

God is SO good! He has brought us this far, and He will carry us on until the perfect time for our little guy to arrive. Praise the Lord!

The "bump" is getting bigger...

The nursery is really starting to come together!!!

Little Wesley Bean has already been SO blessed!

Showered With Blessings!

2009-02-09T20:59:00.010-05:00

This weekend Josh and I went to Florence, where my Mom held a baby shower for us. We had a wonderful time. We got to spend lots of quality time with friends and family, and we were absolutely blessed beyond measure! It was such great fun to see dear friends from home. My Nana's friends came, my Mom's friends came, and my friends came...all to show their love for us and share in the JOY of welcoming our little boy! We received so many special gifts, we are amazed at God's goodness and provision through His family! We are tremendously grateful to everyone who came to the shower :)

While I attended the shower, Josh had the opportunity to go fishing with my Dad. When my Dad asked Josh if he would like to go fishing, Josh's eyes got as big as saucers and he looked at me and said, "Can I?!" How could I say no!?? :) Josh has said several times that his time on the lake was wonderful! Although they did not catch fish, Josh was able to relax and breathe deep the fresh air. He says it was good preparation for the major work he has ahead. He will begin his intensive Kaplan MCAT course this week. The course lasts for 4 months, and at the end, Josh will take the MCAT again. He has renewed courage and faith that this is what the Lord has called him to, and is taking on the challenge full strength.

As soon as we got home this afternoon, we unpacked the car, and I got busy arranging gifts in the nursery. It was so much FUN to look at each piece so special, and remember who gave that gift, and then put it in a special place! I am really getting excited about becoming a mother. Although I think it is starting to settle in a little bit more and more, I am sure that we have a LOT of surprises in store that come with being parents :) We love you all, and covet your continued prayers for little Wesley's health, growth, and faith in Christ.

The guys spent some R&R time on the lake, while I got quality time with the Ladies!

My wonderful Mother, she and Nana hosted the shower.

Such adorable decorations

Blessings abundant!

Little Man will be so CUTE in his new outfits!!

We were blessed with many cloth diapers to start our supply :)

Even my kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Best, came to the shower!!

The proud Aunts Shurley and 2 of the newest Shurley Cousins!

(Anna with Katie, Carly with Piper, Suzanne, Me)

let the changes begin...

2009-01-22T14:50:00.007-05:00

Just wanted to provide an update....we're GREAT! :) Josh and I have both been working hard at work, he likes calling himself a vampire since he works nights and gets to draw blood! We had a great trip to the mountains this past weekend where we visited my Mom and Doug. We missed seeing snow by just a few hours...and we missed it in Florence, who got hit with some good snow...but we did see about 26 flakes here in Charleston on Tues night! HA ha! Go figure! We have started the work of clearing out the back bedroom of all of it's clutter and extra. This is the beginning of BIG CHANGES AHEAD! As I have worked to clean and clear I just keep thinking that this is the beginning of what lies ahead...many sleepless nights with a sick or fussy baby, many diapers to change, many sweet smiles and baby giggles....OH BOY!! :) We are SO blessed beyond measure! We love you all!!

Me & Mama in Babies-R-Us,

where we found a GREAT deal on a 4-piece crib set...

wonderful to build on the colors: brown and green,

and we'll work in some blue too!

Just a quick pic of the blanket from the crib set, near the wall,

it matches perfectly! :)

A before shot of the very messy back bedroom which will be the sweet nursery soon!

Josh's Christmas present from Mama & Doug, is reads:

DAD

King of the Grill