Archive for the 'News' Category

Tuesday, June 8th, 2010

2 years

it is so hard to believe that our little man turns 2-years-old today. where has that time gone? it seems like just yesterday we were bringing him home for the first time. or watching him smile and laugh for the first time. or seeing him rollover, crawl, and walk for the first time. and now, the little dude is 2-years-old, running everywhere, and talking in sentences. i just can’t believe it.

there is no doubt that it has been a roller coaster ride with jackson. and through every bit of it, i can honestly say that it has been the best two years ever. i have enjoyed every second of watching him grow and develop into the little boy that he has become. i am always looking forward to the next milestone in his life, and i hope the many years to come are as memorable as the last two.

in the past few days leading up to his birthday, we have been looking at several of his pictures and videos. in the process, we ran across this little gem from his birthday party last year. it is unbelievable to see the difference a year makes. and then again, some things, like his love for the spotlight, will always be the same.

Saturday, April 10th, 2010

and we’re back

in case you were wondering, we are all still alive here at the stepp house. this update is long overdue, and we sincerely apologize for our absence. to say that things have been chaotic would be an understatement.

first of all, emerson has not been the “easy” baby that we so anxiously awaited. in fact, his first six weeks of life were a repeat of jackson all over again. constant crying. inconsolable fussing. nonexistent sleeping. you know, the kind of stuff that makes parents wonder why they decided to have children in the first place. we thought one fussy baby was tough. but two? it has been so bad that when i recently offered to get groceries for kelly, here is the list that she gave me.

i know that is probably funny to you, but the crazy thing is that i think she was serious. it was only after searching for the fourth item that i realized she wasn’t.

but on a brighter note, jackson has really adjusted well to being a big brother. once we brought emerson home and the “fun” began, we immediately wondered how jackson would handle the nonstop crying. then, one evening, i saw firsthand how he handled it. he just simply covered emerson’s face, politely said “shhh”, and walked away. brilliant.

i certainly hope you were able to laugh at some of this. laughter has become crucial to our everyday survival as parents. and, of course, a lot of prayer helps as well. we have so much stuff in the works, including a ton of pictures, more videos, and a new image of both the boys for the top of the website. as always, thank you for thinking of us and following our crazy “stepps”.

Friday, February 12th, 2010

always

as promised, here is the brand new video documenting the birth of emerson. as if driving in the snowstorm wasn’t dangerous enough, we had to add another element by introducing a camera. but it was all for the memory.

the music is a song entitled “always”, which is from switchfoot’s new album, hello hurricane. as you can see, we decided to aptly title the video “always” as well. so without further ado, please enjoy.

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

emerson caldwell stepp

as you may have heard, there is now a new addition to our family. his name is emerson caldwell stepp, and he was born at 12:10 AM on january 30, 2010. he weighed 7 pounds 7 ounces and was 20 inches long. needless to say, we are quite smitten with him.

if you know me at all, then you know that i am a sucker for a good story. and believe me, the birth of emerson is quite the story. this is mainly due to the fact that kelly’s water broke during the onset of the snow storm that we encountered last week. our bags were not packed, the roads were covered, and we had to get to asheville asap. it was a tad bit intense. but we made it. and emerson was born in the very same hospital room as jackson. but even sweeter than that is the fact that emerson was born on the 11-year-anniversary of our very first date. that’s right, i took kelly out for the first time on january 30, 1999. unbelievable. it simply could not have been any more perfect.

and now that we are all home, the adventures of having two little dudes have definitely begun. this explains why  it has taken us over a week to post any photos. heck, we haven’t even posted any photos from december yet. but for now, you can view emerson’s entire birth album by clicking on the image above. also, you know i can’t do anything without making a video. there is definitely an upcoming video of emerson’s birth in the works, and it should be ready for you to view very soon. until then, take some time to enjoy the photos, and if it crosses your mind, say a little prayer for our sanity.

Sunday, January 10th, 2010

dessert & fiber one bars

this past thursday the girls from my bible study threw me a little baby shower. we were supposed to eat dessert at a little bistro on main street, however, those plans fell thru when that little restaurant was found to be closed. so quickly, i suggested the ole’ AppleBee’s because i love blondies. both the little 19 month olds named Jackson and the dessert. so, off we went. we had a really sweet waiter named Michael who was a bit overwhelmed with us. after all, 5 out of the 10 of us are pregnant.
i haven’t laughed so hard in so long. that was the best therapy anyone could have offered me. just when i’m feeling consumed by the daunting task of raising two little boys, my sweet friends rallied to lift my spirits and remind me not to take myself so seriously. and might i mention that my super sweet friends from work have also uplifted me so much this past week. thank you so much lacey, kendra, melanie and claudia for all of your sweet, sweet comments on my previous post.

i shouldn’t go into too many details because i know some guys read this blog as well as some family members, but lets just say, no discomfort of pregnancy went undiscussed. and i have never laughed harder. the funniest part of the night was when one of the pregnant gals (i’ll keep her name anonymous) was offered a fiber one bar. after a plate of mozzarella sticks and a little desert called the triple chocolate meltdown she quickly seized the fiber one bar and dipped it into the remaining ice cream on her plate as only a woman would do if plagued by the discomfort of constipation. we all watched in amazement and i couldn’t catch my breath i was laughing so hard. she was so stinkin’ cute about the whole thing. it was like something out of a movie.

i love these girls like they are my sisters and have known many of them since middle school. i am so blessed to call them my friends. i love you gals so much! thank you for such a wonderful night and for such a generous baby gift.

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

big trouble

uuggh… ok, so jackson has been sick for the past week. sick like we have never (thankfully) experienced before. he had the croup and on one particular night i even thought i should take him to the ER because it had gotten so bad. i stayed up the entire night with the lights on just watching my child breathe and counting his respirations to make sure they were not too fast and that his lip were not turning blue. anyway, now he is on the mend physically, but mentally and emotionally he would like to still be sick. basically what i’m saying is that he still thinks i am suppose to hold him during naps and sleep with him at night. for nap time, like always, we sit on our rocker and i squeeze him onto my enormous belly and we rock. usually his eyes become heavy and I easily transition him from my lap to his crib while he’s awake, but just before his eyes close, and he nods off to sleep NO PROBLEM! not so much today. every time i even began to stop he would pop up and say “NO MAMA.” well, big mama can do that for a while, but then i have to pee. not like, ok bladder, i’ll go in just a few minutes, but like if you don’t go and pee now you’re going to wish they made pampers in your size kinda pee. so, i gently place him in his crib and he immediately begins to scream and say, “NO MAMA… CHAIR. PLEASE!” oh, just break my heart now. to this day, it still completely crushes me to hear my child scream. STILL! and we have had plenty of practice in the screaming department. hearing him scream just sets me off. it will turn my good day into a bad one. isn’t that horrible. i feel so guilty for letting him cry it out, but in just a few short weeks when reality serves him a big helping of “you are not the only child anymore” i don’t know what else to do. how in the world am i going to manage two babies screaming? question #1: is it acceptable to cry with them? question #2: will you pray for me? because acceptable or not, i’m sure i will be crying with them. in 4 weeks or less, i’m relatively certain i’m in for big TROUBLE.

Friday, January 1st, 2010

ten years

five years ago today, i married my high school sweetheart, kelly. i am blessed to experience life with her every day, and i am honored to call her my best friend, my wife, and the mother of our son. each year on our anniversary, it is difficult not to reflect on all that has happened the previous year. this is particularly true right now, as we have just completed a decade in our lives. ten years. wow.

ten years ago today, if you would have asked about my future plans, the answer would have been simple. with a full scholarship to play baseball in college, i had set an attainable goal of being a professional athlete. it consumed me, and i really never thought of a career without baseball. there was no question that i would be playing this sport for many years to come. several injuries later, i began to realize that God had other plans for me, and that my life was slowly becoming what it was meant to be.

in the course of the last ten years, i graduated high school, played college baseball, broke some bones, played some more baseball, broke some more bones, got married, bought a house, graduated college, started a business, and brought a son into this world. looking back, i would not change the course of those events for anything. these have been the most exciting and meaningful years of my life, and there is no way to truly capture all that has happened.

as i look forward to the next ten years, there is no doubt that they will be just as memorable. there are so many new things right around the corner for our family. just to mention a few, we are expecting another baby boy in february, we have started construction on our new house, viewfromzero is growing, and i am researching the possibility of yet another creative business venture. we will certainly keep you posted on each of these events.

i write all of this in both reflection of the past and hope for the future. i wish each and every one of you a happy new year, and perhaps instead of focusing on resolutions, we should just enjoy the ride. after all, a lot can happen in ten years.

Friday, December 25th, 2009

12 words – milk

well, we are finishing the 12 words of Christmas with one of jackson’s most frequent requests: milk. he has been saying this word for quite a while now, and when it comes to eating or drinking, he is pretty serious. since it is Christmas, we decided to give you the extended version of the video. you can really see how a typical conversation takes shape with jackson. he actually says seven words throughout the course of the video: hot, drink, mama, mess, wipe, milk, and please.

we just want to take a moment to personally thank all of you that visit our blog and watch our videos. we love reading your comments, and we are so humbled by your interest in our family. merrry Christmas to each and every one of you.

Thursday, December 24th, 2009

12 words – dang

well, you are getting a little added bonus with this video. not only does jackson say “dang”, but he takes it a step further by saying “dang it”. his first official fragment of a sentence that he most likely learned from yours truly. the funny thing is that jackson knows he is not supposed to say this word. so he saves it for when he is really trying to show out. this is typically when he is getting disciplined, and he doesn’t like what we have to say. he gets this real serious look on his face and yells “dang” in order to demonstrate his frustration with our parenting. in this video, he is playfully saying “dang it” with his classic mischievous grin and laugh.

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

12 words – ball

when i was growing up, not a day went by that i didn’t have a baseball in my hand. and now, it seems that same trait has carried over into jackson. he loves throwing balls, and it amazes me at how naturally it comes to him. this video is actually from when jackson was 14-months-old. we were just excited to watch him walk and talk, but throwing a ball was icing on the cake. at the end of the video, he says “ball” with genuine excitement. of course i am proud to see him take an interest in playing ball, and i have already started teaching him some inside tips to the game. perhaps he will follow in his daddy’s footsteps.