Cullen's Here!

The story of Cullen’s Birth:  

On Friday evening Corrie came home from school and took a nap after a long day at school.  She was awakened around 6:00 p.m. by small contractions that began to grow more and more intense.  After a couple of hours of these contractions, she realized that the contractions had been going on for a few hours and it was time to call the doctor.  

After talking to the doctor and explaining what was going on, she said to go ahead and go to the hospital and let them check me out to see if she was really in labor, or if these were just false contractions.  Off we went to the hospital, thinking that we would be sent back home because we were overreacting.  

Once they checked her out, they determined that because the contractions were making Corrie’s blood pressure rise, that she should be admitted.  We were admitted into the hospital around 11:00 p.m.  and once checked in, they gave Corrie an epidural for the pain, and her blood pressure dropped back to a normal and she started to dilate.  At about 4:30 a.m. she was ready to push.  

At 6:31 a.m. Cullen James Portier was born.  He weighed 9lbs 1oz and was 21 inches long.  He’s got a full head of hair, and the sweetest little smile.  We’re so thankful for our healthy baby boy the Lord blessed us with! 

Back in Action

So as you can see we are back into the swing of things! There has definitely been a lack of content for my five readers and that is definitely not due too not caring about blogging.

I guess the best way for me to fully explain the last few months is to give you a non-sequential breakdown of what’s going on with my family.

1. My father passed away on August 23, 2009. I am still not completely ready to talk about it but it’s better that dad isn’t suffering now. He was a great man and we were blessed to get to know him. I think that was evident Im the attendance at his funeral.

2. The baby and corrie are now at 36 weeks. I am totally excited and nervous at the same time. Please know in advance that you are welcome to come visit us in the hospital. We have multiple friends who have had their baby or will be having their baby near our delivery date. It’s been great to move into this new area of our life. We were so blessed to get to some many awesome gifts at the baby showers.

3. My birthday was August 30 and we got to celebrate it with family at the cheesecake factory. My family in typical fashion threw in enough money for me to justify to Corrie to purchase an iPod touch, which by the way I am typing on rift now with almost no slow time compare to typing on a keyboard.

4. School is kicking my butt! I laid out of school on the first week solely to get myself emotionally available to come back. My RPE family was so encouraging to me! However being out that long definitely put me behind the curve on getting school year rolling.

5. I’m attempting to lose weight. I’m at a rathe hefty weight rift now (I blame it on Pregnancy sympathy weight). When I got the iPod touch I downloaded an app that allows me the opportunity to easily count my calories. If I stay on track I should lose about sixty pounds In 26 weeks.

6. Grad school was a tough decision to lay out one class in order to get myself straight to be able to finish up. However I am still on track to graduate in the winter!

Okay I’ve done enough talking what’s going on with you?

Sunday School Baby Shower

The ladies of the Honeymooners class at WTBC threw John and I a baby shower today.  We are so blessed!  At the shower we received three of the cutest diaper cakes, and so many great gifts.  Thanks again ladies, we are so blessed to have you in our lives! 

James Portier

James Wallace Portier – age 61 was called safely home Sunday August 23, 2009 in Houston, Texas. James was born in Jacksonville, FL. July 1, 1948 the son of the late John Willie Portier and Viola Quinette Rakestraw Portier. He worked for over twenty-five years in Oilfield Pump Repair for Pesco, last working in shipping and receiving for a plumbing supply warehouse. James was a tinkerer, a true kid at heart, who liked to go to the Houston Car Show or to the Drag Races in Beaumont. He was a Vietnam veteran serving in the U.S. Army as an infantryman. He wed Bonnie Hobbs March 5, 1983 in Liberty, were together they celebrated twenty-six years of marriage. He was preceded in death by his parents as well as a sister Ruth Hillyard. He leaves behind his beloved wife Bonnie Portier, sons John W. Portier and his wife Corie Lynn of Missouri City, and Corey E. Portier of Liberty. His two daughters Heather and Felicia Portier, a brother Harold Portier and his wife Myrtle of Pensacola, FL, and a sister Linda Portier of Jacksonville, FL. In addition he leaves three nephews, one niece and a grandchild expected in October. Visitation will be held from 5-8 pm Tuesday August 25^th at Allison Funeral Service, 1101 N Travis, Liberty. Funeral services will be held 4pm Wednesday at First Baptist Church Liberty with burial to follow in Palms Memorial Park, Dayton. Friends and family may send condolences online to www.allisonfuneralservices.com

Baby Shower with the Tucker Family!

Today we were blessed by our dear friends, the Tucker family who threw us the most wonderful shower.  Thank you Katherine, Allison, Joyce, Karin, and Martha for the amazing shower, we loved it so much!  Both of our families met up in Houston to attend the shower, along with our dear friend Abby, and Mrs. Strong.  It was great getting to see everyone and have some sweet treats.  We’re also thankful for all the great friendships!

Pregnancy Photo shoot!

We took a break this evening from prepping our classrooms, and trying to prepare for school to go and take some maternity photos with our friend Shannon.  We started off taking some photos at her house, and then ended up at Oyster Creek Park.  We got lucky and after the rain ceased the sky took on a gorgeous color and helped create a magnificent backdrop for the photos. 

33 Weeks

We’re at 33 weeks!  Whohoo!  Baby is kicking like crazy and making Corrie as uncomfortable as possible when she sleeps.  

Game Night at WTBC

We love our church!  Game night was so fun, we enjoyed eating a catered mexican food meal, and then played games with our fellow Sunday school classmates.  The girls played a game of Phase 10, and the guys played Settlers of Catan. 

Road Trip!

This weekend I took a trip to San Marcos with some of the girls from her Sunday School class. I had a blast hanging out with these ladies, sharing stories, and walking from store to store looking for things we desperately needed, or thought we needed.  

During the trip I looked for some new shoes for school, but was sad when I discovered that my feet were swollen, and my normal shoe size would no longer work.  Sad day!  I just pray that my feet won’t stay swollen and increase in shoe size for the rest of my life!  

Family Play day at the Pool

Today was the first of many play days that will take place at the Portier house.  We had all of Johns cousins over to swim while John, his mom, and Aunt Meredith worked on grad school.  Alex, Tyler, and Maggie had a great time swimming and playing in the pool.  While they swam, Aunt Laura entertained baby Owen as he floated in his canopy float.  Garfield watched from the window as everyone had their fun outside at the pool and occasionally tried to escape.  Selah kept everyone outside entertained chasing after her pool toys.  Sounds like tons of fun right?

We love our Sunday school class!

John and I have been so blessed by this class!  In January we started attending Williams Trace Baptist Church and were amazed with the new friends God soon blessed us with.  

Summer Backyard Fun

Swimming pools, sprinklers, reading a good book.  I love summer.  This summer has been especially hot for those here in Texas, so having a pool in our backyard has been heavenly.  Between John, the dog, and me, one of us is in the pool daily.  Usually it’s the dog taking one of her afternoon swims, but once it starts to cool down a little outside I’ll go and hang out as well.  

John has had a busier summer than usual with his grad school work, so he doesn’t swim as often as the rest of us, but when he does it’s a special treat.  This past week we bought some more giant foam noodles for the pool, and a sprinkler for the yard (and the dog) since our grass seems to be dying.  

Baby Room progress

We said goodbye to the moon and stars painted on the wall in the baby room without much regrets.  With the baby being a boy, we figured the creepy moon had to go.  John was in the process of repainting the room for a good week or so and he is about finished.  Only has to do a few touchups on baseboards and such.  

After two coats of Kilz, the purple walls finally vanished.  It probably wouldn’t of taken two coats, but with the walls bumpy texture it was hard to get the best coverage with just one coat.  

During the painting adventures the cat decided he needed to help too by creeping over the paint tarps, and attacking paint spatters on the floor.  Needless to say Garfield had some white spots on his coat for a few days and he was not a fan.

Nursery theme

When it comes to choosing a theme for a nursery there are so many to choose from.  We’ve scoured websites galore and been to several stores and finally made a choice.  We’ve chosen a nursery theme called Zanzibar.  John and I both agreed on it, and we liked the subtle greens and neutral colors that it combined in its patterns of safari animals.  

The picture I’ve posted is obviously from the web, so we won’t be decking out the room with quite so much “stuff” as they’ve shown in this picture.  I was a fan of the fact that I already have a turtle, elephant, and zebra stuffed animal that I built at Build a Bear (I love that place, by the way) that we could put in the baby room.  All I need to do now is find a giraffe, a monkey, and an alligator, and whatever other jungle animals I think would fit in.  

This week we’re in the process of painting the walls in the baby room.  When we moved into our house, the room was light purple and a yellow moon with a face painted on one of the walls.   We had to prime the walls with two coats of primers to get rid of that creepy yellow moon, but it finally disappeared and the walls are slowly getting painted a shade of green, with a yellow accent wall.  We’re hoping it will end up looking cute.  When we finish the painting process we’ll post some before and after shots so all can experience jungle themed fun with us.

Happy Fathers Day!

Though John’s job as father hasn’t consisted of a lot yet where baby is concerned, he’s been great at keeping me happy, and for that we (mom and baby Portier) are thankful.  Can’t wait to see the worlds best husband become the worlds best daddy!  Love you sweetie!  

25 weeks

Baby Portier is slowly getting bigger, and so is Mom.  He kicks up a storm right before bedtime, so much in fact that even John can feel how active he is.  Garfield likes laying on Corrie’s tummy, wonder if he can feel the baby too?  

Orange cat, right next to the orange juice

So apparently our little Garfield loves to jump into the fridge and sit on the bottom shelf.  We’ve never put him in the fridge nor have we forgotten him in there.  He just hears the door opening, and darts on in and takes a seat.  Quirky little thing.  

Memorial Day Weekend with Mom

We enjoyed the long Memorial Day weekend with Corrie’s mother visiting.  She’s a busy bee with work, and being a student, so its sometimes rare that she gets to come up for a visit.  As part of her birthday and mothers day present, we flew her up to Houston to visit.  

On Saturday during the visit Corrie and her mom went shopping for some maternity clothes, always a joy.  We also embarked upon BabiesRus for the first time.  Wow, completely overwhelming, but very fun.  On Sunday we went to church, and then later that evening met up with Johns parents for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory.  Yum!  Monday was spent doing some random errands, and then back to the airport to drop mom off, and we actually got her there on time!  As opposed to last years visit when we didn’t get her to the airport on time and missed her flight.  All in all it was a great weekend hanging out with family.  

FYI:  Corrie is 22 weeks pregnant in this picture.  

We're having a...

It’s a boy!  Corrie had a sonogram on Friday and we are having baby boy.  At first we thought we might not get to find out the gender because the lab tech said it may be too soon.   But as soon as she looked at the baby she said, “Oh, I know what it is.”  Apparently our little man was in a good position to give away his gender.  Thanks bud.  

Happy Birthday Corrie

Today Corrie turned 28! A birthday in the middle of the week means a celebration the weekend before and the weekend after.  The weekend before we traveled to Victoria to celebrate, and the weekend after Corrie’s mom and grandma came up for a visit.   

John and Corrie celebrated with dinner and a movie.  We had yummy sushi and then went and saw a movie at the theatre, a rare treat indeed.  

Garfield joins the Portier's

After the loss of our precious Oscar, we decided we needed to allow another kitty into our lives to love on.  We adopted Oscar from the humane society, and we decided to do the same again here in Houston. 

We went for a visit and fell in love with an orange tabby named Garfield.  He was crawling all over us from the moment we met him.  We knew that this spunky kitty belonged with us.  Almost a week later we were bringing him home, the newest member of the Portier family.  

Portier News Update

Corrie is pregnant!  Get excited!  Baby Portier coming soon October 9, 2009.  

The Lord gives and the Lord takes away...

Our beloved cat Oscar was taken away from us today.  Victim of a tragic accident we found him a day after he went missing.  He wasn’t just a cat, but a furry member of the family who will always have a place in our heart.  

Meredith and Tom

A joyous day for all at the Haak Winery in Santa Fe, TX where Tom Hackney and Meredith Hobbs were joined in marriage.  John along with his brother and cousins were ushers at the wedding, and Johns mother Bonnie was the Matron of Honor.  It was a gorgeous, but simple wedding.  We saw family members from long and far and even some we didn’t know we had.  Meredith looked so beautiful, and the stars at night were big and bright deep in the heart of Texas.  

Hanging out with the Cullen Cousins

Before heading to Corpus for a few days we stopped in Victoria, TX and hung out with Corrie’s cousins.  We went to Incredible Pizza and played some games and had tons of fun.  We love that place, the pizza is actually pretty good and the their are a ton of games that are fun and cheap.  

On the way back from Corpus, we stopped again to hang out, and this time we got to go roller skating.  Watching the kids skate was hilarious and we enjoyed it so much.  John even did pretty well skating his way around the rink.  

Spring Break in Corpus Christi

We don’t get the opportunity to go to Corpus Christi nearly enough anymore now that we live in the Houston area, but every now and then we get to make a special trip.  Yeah for spring break and fun times with family.  

Valentines Weekend

This years Valentines weekend was a busy one.  We went from youth basketball games, to a geocaching seminar, to Victoria to spend time with family.  

The geocaching seminar was held at Brazos Bend State Park and would have been fun, but it wouldn’t stop raining!  Poor John had to teach families how to do geocaching in constant rain, while Selah and I waited in the car.  After the seminar we drove down to Victoria to spend time with family.  

We got to meet my grandma’s sister Jane who flew down from Florida for her sisters birthday.  It was a good time with family and we felt really blessed to get to spend time with them.  

Lisa's Wedding

One of my best childhood friends got married this weekend in Corpus Christi, TX.  It was so exciting to see my friend get married and wish her all the best in her new marriage.  I especially enjoyed getting to connect with old friends from high school and college.  

Happy Birthday Kat

We love having the Clymer family back in Texas.  Not since we were roommates in college have I got to be around Katherine for her birthday.  

Good fajitas, margaritas and crazy bird antics made it for a fabulous evening.  Thanks Allison for hosting this wonderful party.  We had a blast and can’t wait to do it again soon!  

Molina's and Maeger's

This Friday and Saturday we were blessed to get to hang out with our friends Abby, Will, Melany, and Charokee.  We had so much fun just hanging out, playing board games and playing black light mini golf!  

Meet the new kid

Today we got to meet the newest member of Johns family, Owen Miller Hobbs.  He was born December 9, 2008.  We didn’t get to see him and his family for Christmas, but we were delighted to see them so soon after Christmas.  Yeah for frequent flyer miles!  

We’re not sure if we are ready for children yet, while Aunt Laura was holding Owen, he let out this horrible gas sound, and  we both jumped back stunned.  Who knew such a noise could come from such a small child.  

We enjoyed a New Years dinner of ham, black eyed peas, and cabbage at John’s grandmas house.  As you may have noticed the pattern, getting together with family means pictures!  Click here to see photos of the new kid, and the rest of us.