And On The Eighth Day.....

Let's just try to catch you up on the last eight days since Noah was announced.... Aden and Wiley have been making some adjustments as we have all been back at our own house and establishing and re-establishing some routines. Aden is still thrilled about his new baby brother. Wiley is too, most of the time, but still can be very clingy and was a little jealous of Noah on Mommy's lap at first.
Overall though, they are doing quite well and had even made a sign for Noah's bedroom door when we got home (at that point we still didn't have a name).... On Friday, the 25th, Grandma Karen arrived to PNG. Because of the early arrival by Noah, all of us (except Noah) were able to go to the airport to pick her up. The boys were excited to see her and we will enjoy having her here with us for the next month. Aden had a list of the things he wanted to show her and do with her, and they are working on that daily..... Noah's first bath was also a big event of the week, but ended up being rather uneventful. We will let the picture to the right tell that story. Needless to say, he didn't like it too much....Making hand and foot prints is also a part of the "Riggins Boys Initiation" and while footprints are relatively easy to get, it is next to impossible to get a hand print. But we keep trying....This brings us to the eighth day, for which we chose (as is customary) to have the circumcision done. As is also a tradition, Bubu Jim and Uncle Bill handled this ceremonious event. Unlike the delivery, Daddy did not participate in this, nor did he even stay close enough to hear the cries. He knew Noah was in good hands and waited for a sleeping little boy to be brought back to him. Incidentally, the procedure was delayed a bit at first so Uncle (or is it Grandpa?) Bill had a chance to proudly show Noah off around the hospital as people came by and wondered who this cute little boy was that he had in his arms. The procedure went well, and these 'grandpas' should not have to worry about him remembering what they did to him. Aden proved that when Noah came home and he was asking all about the 'gauzed' area on Noah, not realizing this was him just 3 1/2 short years ago... And so the first eight days ended. Stay tuned....

Introducing . . .

Noah Timothy Riggins!!

The newest member of the Band of Brothers!

Noah arrived on the scene on Monday, September 21, 2009, at 8:55 a.m., two weeks before he was expected. Around 11:00 on Sunday night, Mommy woke up Daddy and said, "I think my water just broke." So they called Dr. Bill across the road and he came to check things out. They went to Kudjip Nazarene Hospital and tried to sleep as they anxiously awaited those first labor pains, which were amazingly slow in coming. Finally, after some cytotec to get the labor going, things started happening around 6 a.m., during a walk around the station. They drew a lot of response as Mommy walked in between Daddy and Dr. Bill, both in scrubs. Around 8 a.m., Mommy was 3cm, by 8:30, she was 7cm, and Noah was born just 25 minutes later. Noah's middle name is his daddy's first name, which is quite significant with this birth - Daddy had the wonderful privilege of delivering Noah, coached along by Dr. Bill!

His big brother Aden was absolutely thrilled from the beginning. He has introduced or offered to Noah practically every book and toy that he owns. He sings, dances, and claps, hugs and kisses him, and seems to be all about this new member of the family. He was even excited to hold him, though once he had Noah in his arms, he wasn't as confident and almost immediately said, "Okay, I'm all done now." Aden's utter enthusiasm, though somewhat overwhelming, has been a wonderful reminder of how blessed we are by this new life in our family. What a precious gift from God, and a beautiful reason to rejoice!

Wiley seems to be warming up to Noah more and more throughout each day. At their first introduction, Wiley was not sure what to think of this little bundle that stole everyone's attention, and not sure he wanted to give him any attention. As Daddy coaxed him, he was able to touch Noah's tiny hands and feet. This morning, as Mommy rocked Noah, Wiley would not have anything to do with either of them, but when she finally put Noah into his basket bed, Wiley climbed into her lap. However, by this evening at bedtime, Wiley proudly gave Noah a kiss and a hug goodnight.

There will be lots of adjustments for us over the next several days and weeks, but we are thrilled with Noah's arrival. He is eating well, and so far sleeping well, too, allowing us to catch up on some rest. We're thankful for our missionary family who is helping to take care of us, feeding us, looking out for Aden and Wiley when needed . . . and we're eagerly awaiting Grandma Karen's arrival on Friday afternoon!


(Click on the announcement for a larger image.)

The Gardening Goes On . . .

Mommy's Landscaping List is apparently unending. Every day she seems to find a new gardening task that needs to be done. Most recently, she wanted to remove all the large stones from around the flower beds and use them to rebuild the stone pathway around the side of the house. Aden was ready to go first thing in the morning, saying immediately, "Mommy, I'm ready to get out the wheelbarrow and put all the rocks in it!" A couple of days ago, on PNG's Independence Day, she had told Aden she wanted to remove a tree stump from a flower bed in the front of the house. Before Mommy had the chance to get outside and begin the day's weeding, Aden was out recruiting help. First, he asked one of the security guards, who bent down to help with Aden's broken hand-spade. When the security guard had to move on, Aden called out to Aunt Marsha. She was unable to help, so he called for "Uncle Bill!" Uncle Bill couldn't resist and soon returned to the flower bed with his own tools, which were much more effective. Aden and Wiley helped him dig around the stump until he could cut it down with his chainsaw. When he was done, the boys enthusiastically set to work burying what was left of the dead tree.

Next, Mommy had suggested that she would like to remove some diseased hibiscus bushes. By this time, Uncle Bill and Daddy had repaired the wheelbarrow and Aden had found a new way to help with the yard work. As Daddy set to work on the hibiscus, the security guard stopped by again, ready to lend a hand. He helped clear out the bushes, while Aden worked hard pushing the wheelbarrow back and forth. While he helped pile up all the branches and shrubs, Wiley watched from a chair in the shade, drinking his milk.

Gardening has not been without some practical lessons for the boys. We're glad they are learning the value of hard work, and the enjoyment that can come in seeing what you have accomplished. They are learning how to help, how to weed, and enjoying digging in the dirt. Aden has also built his vocabulary through the experience. After Mommy finished weeding one of the flower beds, Auntie Erin helped to put tea dust around the plants for fertilizer. Aden couldn't resist the new layer of soft, dark dirt. After he took a couple of steps, he turned around and exclaimed, "Mommy, I made pictures of my feet!" Mommy recognized the teaching opportunity and identified the pictures as Aden's "footprints."

Weeds and Hugs

With two little boys in the house, there is a lot to 'blog' about, especially when it has been more than a week since the last blog entry. I am sure things have happened, or been said, that you would love to read about or see pictures of. Hmmm. Too bad that Mommy and Daddy can't remember what they were. Sorry. For the sake of getting something on here for you to read, we are just going to tell you that everyone has been busy getting ready for the new baby. We all worked outside this past Saturday, in the flower beds. Yes, the 'nesting' has moved outdoors now. Not sure if the baby will really appreciate how much work went into it, but really he would have had to seen what they looked like before. Aden and Wiley loved being outside pulling weeds, digging holes in the gardens for the flowers, or just digging up the flowers. Aden says that we were "planting the weeds" and wants to do more of it. Wiley just likes it anytime he can play in the dirt. We hesitated to tell this story because we don't have any pictures to go with it. We aren't done 'planting weeds' though, so watch for the continuation of this story to come.
One other 'blog-worthy' story from this past week comes from Wiley. He is really starting to talk a lot and put words together well to form almost complete sentences. This past week, Wiley was with Daddy down at the Radcliffe's house. As they were leaving, Daddy was helping Aden with his shoes and calling for Wiley to come get his on. He couldn't find Wiley though. After he called his name again, Wiley came wandering out of the pantry where Bubu Jim was. Daddy asked him what he was doing in there and Wiley replied, "I finding a hug for Bubu Jim." Have you found your hug today?
(This obviously isn't a picture from the above story, but is one of Wiley giving one of his patented "squeeze hugs.")