Eight Years Ago Today…
Eight years ago today, this little guy kicked his way into the world, into our lives, into our hearts. Literally…kicked his way out. Born at 35 weeks and 4 days and weighing in at 6 pounds 15 1/2 ounces, we were not quite prepared for him. We thought we had 5 more weeks of preparation. He had other plans. We had just settled into our new home. I had spent the past 6 weeks tearing out carpeting, painting every surface, changing all the fixtures and appliances getting the house ready for our new addition. It felt like I had just finished it all, had sat down in my big comfy chair with the intention of relaxing and enjoying all the newness in the peace and quiet for the next month before a baby arrived. And bam! Baby arrived.
On the evening of April 30, 2011, my husband and I sat on our back deck enjoying the most scrumptious dinner of steak on the grill with my sister, her husband, and my nephew. I was starting get some of that anxiety that new moms feel as they are so close to embarking on the craziest journey of their lives. My sister causally told me that I should have a glass of wine to relax. The baby is fine, all of his organs are formed, one glass of wine won’t hurt. I took three sips and squish! My water broke. To make a long story short, we headed off to the hospital to discover that the little guy had been sitting breach since at least 28 weeks when I went in for a 3-D scan. According to the doctors, the little bugger never flipped and with one swift kick to my uterus, he broke my water. He was brought into the world via C-section in the wee early morning hours of May 1 exactly one month before his due date of June 1. Funny thing is…his grandfather predicted it. My father-in-law’s birthday is also on May 1 (Happy Birthday, Pap) and as soon as we were given a due date of June 1, he said to us, “Nope. That baby is going to come on my birthday.” We told him he was crazy. That was a month early. We hate to burst your bubble but you are not getting a grandson on your birthday. Damn it if Pap wasn’t right and we were so very wrong.
And we welcomed Archer (Archie) James Herling into our lives and hearts and souls and we would never be the same again. We love you to the moon and back, little man. Happy, happy birthday.
5 Facts about Archie…
- His favorite color is orange.
- His favorite food is pizza.
- He is super funny and sarcastic with a fantastic sense of humor.
- He is a Kindle addict.
- In second grade at 8 years old, he is nearly 5 feet tall.
We are so blessed to have this amazing young man in our lives. He is smart and funny and caring and such a worrier. He is silly and goofy and always makes us laugh (except when he is pissing us off, as children will do). And we love him more than we thought we were capable. Happy, happy birthday, sweet Archer James.
Keeping it on the edge,
Shelbee
Linking up with these Fabulous Link Parties.
19 Comments
Tamar Benjamin
Happy birthday kiddo!!
What adorable pictures!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Tamar!
xoxo
Shelbee
Jacqui Berry
Adorable post and what cute photos! Got me quite emosh! Thanks for sharing your gorgeous family. Have a super week. Jacqui Mummabstylish
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Aw, Jacqui, thank you so much! I got a little emotional going through the old photos myself. Where does the time go?
xoxo
Shelbee
Patrick Weseman
Very nice pics and Happy Blessed Birthday to him.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you so much, Patrick!
xoxo
Shelbee
heather noire
He looks like a nice boy and you are very sweet to post such a great post like this 🙂 http://www.bauchlefashion.com/2019/05/rings-that-make-fashion-statement.html
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Heather, thank you so much. He is a little sweetheart, for sure. We are blessed to have him.
xoxo
Shelbee
Liz
Aww this is the sweetest post! Loved seeing these photos too – he’s a doll. Plus I can’t believe that he’s as tall as me haha! Happy birthday to him!
Lizzie
http://www.lizzieinlace.com
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you, Lizzie! And he is as tall as you! So funny.
xoxo
Shelbee
Nancy
Oh what Story! But he turned out pretty okay! Happy birthday dear Archie!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks, Nancy! He did turn out pretty okay. He is a really good kid and we are blessed to have him!
xoxo
Shelbee
Tina von Tinaspinkfriday
Shelbee so wonderful family pics. Happy Birthday for Archer James.XO Tina
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you so much, Tina!
xoxo
Shelbee
Helen C.
Your cutest post ever!!! He is so sweet! And a kindle addict!! Happy birthday, Archie!Another adventure filled year awaits you!🎂
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Helen, my friend, thank you so much! I will certainly let Archer know that you have sent him birthday wishes from halfway across the world!
xoxo
Shelbee
Mother of 3
Aw, what a sweet post! Love looking at all these photos. I hope he had a fabulous birthday.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thanks so much, Joanne! He was a moody 8 year old on his birthday, but I guess that’s just life these days! Lol.
xoxo
Shelbee
Helen C.
😍😍😍