So much to catch up on...

Here is a snapshot of our life... it is busy... crazy... but oh so much fun!

Josh - He is a very active, bubbly, busy 3 year old. He has learned so much and has a very large vocabulary. He makes Jim and I laugh every day with his stories since they almost always involve something we did at least a year ago and how much fun we had. I have said it before, but now more than ever, this kid is a sponge. Tonight on our way back from the annual softball party we passed by a pickup truck. Josh said, "When I get bigger I want a pick up truck." Jim replies, "Oh really?" Josh responds, "Just like Papa's". We both laugh and I say, "Well maybe you can have Pappa's when you turn 16". He goes, "No mom, I want my own truck.". Well okay then. I guess I was told what he wants.

Josh has always been a daddy's boy, but in the last month, I have enjoyed putting him to bed almost every night. He was stuck with me for five days when Jim had a baseball trip and I think he realized that I am also fun to hang out with. We have been reading some short poems/stories from the Shel Silverstein book "Where the Sidewalk Ends". My favorite one to read is "The Unicorn" mainly because it is actually a song... although I never knew that until I saw "Gary" up at tech... and that was more for drinking than educational purposes. Well Gary officially taught me something that I am passing onto my kids. Last night Jim went to read to him and Josh's request was the Unicorn song... when Jim started to read it, Josh said, "No daddy sing it". Jim tried and apparently it was not good enough so he kicked Jim out and had me do the bedtime routine... IT WAS A FIRST! and yes, I loved it! ;)

Josh knows the letters in his name by sight and completely out of order. He'll point to an 'S' and say, hey that is an "S" mom! Like in my name. He recognizes numbers pretty well up to 10. And the kid is already really smart on the computer knowing how to use a mouse and play a number of kids games. He can pretty much dress himself these days. Although for some reason when he takes off his shirt he puts his arms through the neck hole rather than through the belly opening. Ah well... he'll get there.

Everett - He is SO active. He is crawling, pulling himself up on furniture, not cruising yet... but the kid is EVERYWHERE! He is transitioning to the next room and apparently has surprised them all as to how quickly he will move around. He is not afraid of anything... he sees a bigger kid pulling up on something... and he thinks he can do the same.

He is loving solid foods and moving up into bigger soft chunks of things like avocado and mangos. He loves them! He officially weighed in at 19lbs 4 oz this past week for a doctors visit! Everett loves to stick out his tongue and make a tooting noise... all the time. Whenever he wakes up, that is what we will hear first. In the car when it is quiet... that is what we will hear. If you do it back, he will just giggle and then do it right back. On our long car rides to MI, Josh will get him laughing SO HARD by pretending to hurt himself or just laughing hysterically. Everett will just giggle and stick out his tongue. It is SO FUN to see these two interact. They both just love each other so much. I know it sounds corny, but really they do. Josh will do just about anything for Everett and Everett just grins when he walks in the room. He will roll, crawl, and pull himself where ever he needs to go to keep up with Josh. I think the only drama between the two of them is over the HOCKEY STICKS! Ha Ha! :) He is just the most happy non-drama little man. I love it! He still is sleeping through the night, since 2 mos old... and if he goes to bed a little later... he sleeps in later... RIDICULOUS! Josh... still up at 6am EVERYDAY!

Jimbo... work... kids... softball... visiting friends on the weekend.

Me... work... work... kids... work... and some friend time. No working out. I really really need to get things re-balanced in life... cause it is WAY out of wak. And just in time for school to start. YAY! :) 6 credits this fall... only 4 semesters to go until graduation... THE END IS IN SIGHT!!

Everett's Baptism

Finally it is here, Everett's baptism. I am very excited since I am guessing the outfit will fit him perfectly... another week and I bet it would be too small! We had lots of guests in town this weekend for the big event. Grandma and Grandpa Kirkwood, G'ma Connie, Aunt Deb and Uncle Chris, Abby/Aaron and the girls, Catherine all represented the Kirkwood family. Nanna and Pappa, Shannon and Steve, Joe and Megan, and G'ma Donna and G'pa Roger all represented my family. It was so nice to have everyone in town.

The weather was horrible so we were limited to mainly indoor activities all weekend. The kids hung out at the pool Saturday morning while a few of us went shopping to Hobby Lobby. It is my mom's FAVORITE store and every time they come to town we go there. It is the only store that I know we average 2 hours in every time we go. Sometimes it is a little much, but we get awesome stuff for the house. That afternoon I took a few family members on a tour of my work... it was fun to show my Dad, Grandma/Grandpa, and brother what I do. I think it helped put in perspective why I am on call 24/7 and why I say that I work with grown toddlers. ha ha!

That night we celebrated a number of birthdays. Aarons (BIL), Cindy's (MIL), my Dads, mine, Josh, and Catherine are all between Mid April to Mid May. We had pie, ice cream, cake, and a big big dinner. Everyone fit in our dining/living room at one table like they did for Josh's baptism weekend, but it is getting a little more snug with all the new little ones! The kids had a blast playing all weekend together.

Now the baptism. What an event! We arrived somewhat intact despite the pouring rain on the way into church that morning. I had focused so much on getting us there that I forgot to bring his matching coat and blanket. But somehow ended up with a ratty old dish towel in my hands. Everett was STARVING when we arrived so my mom fed him a bottle. During the homily we heard him let'r rip... I realized it was the very end of the homily meaning it was baptism time... I panicked and turned to my mom and asked, "Did it go through?". She just shrugged her shoulders as she looked. I turned back to the front and saw the pastor coming down the aisle, I asked my mom again, "Did it go through?". She then lifted him up and there was that lovely mustard poop all the way up his back!!! REALLY? Are you FRICKEN kidding me?

Jim already has the diaper changing pad out and a diaper/wipes ready to go... and all I could think of is, "you can't change a diaper in church... do you want to be struck by lightening?". So I grabbed Everett not sure what to do and said to Father Mike, "um, we have a problem" and then I proceeded to show him his back. Father Mike looked at me like, uh what? I said, "We had a blowout". Father Mike goes, "We have a delay of game everyone, cause Father Mike doesn't want to touch that!". So Jim rips Everett out of my hands and him, my mom, and SIL do the fastest diaper change I have ever seen. When I got Everett back in my arms I said, "Game on!". Everyone chuckled but for that 30 second delay I was forsure BEAT red. Father Mike commented that you could tell this was the second child because I wasn't freaking out! ha ha!

The baptism went on without any more hiccups. He was very smiley and Josh watched every move. He was so curious as to what was going on and where "Jesus" (aka Father Mike) was taking him when he brought Everett up front to show the congregation. It was very cute!

We headed back home and had a nice big brunch with everyone who could make it. Most of our family left around two that afternoon, but Abby/Aaron and the girls stayed until about 9pm and Uncle Chris and Aunt Deb stayed until 6pm. They were all leaving early the next morning for MI. It was a very nice weekend and despite the weather, it went VERY well with everyone in town. Thanks to all who got hotel rooms to help with the crazyness!

Aunt Shannon's Baby Shower

This weekend we went back to MN for my sisters baby shower with the Thuente side. We didn't get on the road until 6pm because I was tied up at work (so frustrating). But again the boys traveled extremely well and barely made a peep on the 4 hour drive. We got to MN and was able to put Josh from his carseat to the bed without waking him up... AWESOME! Saturday morning we got ready for the baby shower with my cousin Lisa and sister.

We had a good turnout for the shower, many of my cousins on my dads side and my sisters MIL. We played the Price is Right, the baby name game, and bingo when she opened gifts. Everett did well during it all, although he was a little overwhelmed with all the noise. Everyone wanted to hold him and we was quite happy to be held.

After the shower we had a birthday dinner at my parents for my brother Joe who turned 26. Jim and I joined him and his friends out in Stillwater that night to celebrate and had a very good time. I never really have hung out with my brother and his friends so it was a lot of fun. They are very good people, crazy, but good people. We partied till about 2pm when my brother Jack (18) came to pick us up. We got back to my parents and finally were in bed around 3pm... the bummer part of going out... the kids still get up at 6-7am!

We spent most of the day in MN just relaxing and spending more time with the family. Josh learned how to flip the puck up onto his stick and shoot it. I couldn't believe that he was able to learn the move and do it so quickly. He just gets so excited to play hockey with my brothers and dad. He got the section finals game of my brother Jack on a DVD... we watched it the whole way home and he was SO excited to hear them say Jack Walsh and see him score two goals... we had to keep replaying the goals over and over... So cute!

First week back to reality...

Well the first week is done and over with and I couldn't be happier. I worked some very long hours and realized that what I had feared is likely the truth... the hours on the job are going to be long. I worked till at least 5:30 every night this week... and that meant only about an hour to hang out with Everett before he would go to sleep at 7pm. Josh goes to bed at about 9pm so there is still some time to hang out with him after work.

Our getting ready routine went pretty smoothly, Jim helps get the boys ready in the morning and I drop off around 7:30am. Josh LOVES to help drop off Everett in his room. He helps carry in Everett's things and gives him a big hug and kiss, reminding him he will be upstairs. Everett did GREAT at school. He is sleeping really well, which surprised all of his teachers. They say he is a very easy baby, which I agree with. Jim picks up after work and gets dinner going every night. So things went as smooth as they could for our first go at it. Crazy to think that Everett is almost 12 weeks old.

My last week at home

Really, could it be so... I can't believe 12 weeks have come and gone and that I am going back to work next week. This time around, I am dreading every single part of it... I know that the hours are going to be long and unpredictable and that my bonding time with the boys is going to be very limited... So what better way to ignore what is going on in life than to make baby food! Ha ha! I decided to try it this time around and found it was ridiculously easy. I bought carrots, green beans, peas, and sweet potatoes. After cooking each vegetable according to the best way to preserve nutrients I pureed them in the food processor I bought for Jimbo this past Christmas. Then scooped them into ice cube trays to freeze. After they were frozen I popped 4 cubes into a vacuum freezer bag and sealed them up. It was a somewhat time consuming project, but it was very easy overall and I felt pretty good about myself. I hope that Everett likes it in a few months. I will probably try to make a little more in the months to come just to keep ahead of him, but I have a good start for now.

Update on Josh. He is growing up so fast and learning so much. I look forward to the conversations we have and am amazed at the things he remembers. He repeats so much of what Jim and I say to the point it is scary. Some of his favorite sayings are, "What's up guys", "What are you talking about?", and "Yeah mom, Yeah, that was cool". He is reading his stories now on his own and listening to him read them is hysterical because he gets the main points but will mimick the way Jim/I read them.

Everett is all full of smiles. He really has been such an easy baby. He sleeps great at night, going down around 7pm and waking up around 8 or 9 am with one or two feedings in the middle somewhere. It is FANTASTIC. Josh still gets up more than Everett! It is really fun to see the two boys interact as well, Everett just stares at Josh and smiles. I can't wait to see them play together... it won't be long I know!

I finally had the guts to really chop my hair... well above my chin anyway. It turned out pretty cute but wow was that weird to wash in the shower! Where did it all go!

Easter Sunday we went to church and then to Oshkosh to meet my friend Mandy and her family for brunch. It was delicious and the boys did fantastic. They had the run of the restaurant and the owners thought the kids were hilarious as they ran back and forth from the table to the buffet to get peeps. After brunch we went to their house for an Easter Egg hunt. Eric, Willa, and Josh ran like crazy to find the eggs in the backyard and they were everywhere. Josh definitely understands the Easter Bunny now...

The rest of the day... we relaxed! So don't want to go back to work tomorrow!

Our Trip to MI

This weekend we finally made a trip to MI to introduce Everett to the Kirkwoods. So far only Jim's parents had been able to meet him, so this was going to be a big weekend. We drove out on Friday and had a pretty uneventful drive. The boys were very good throughout the drive and we have successfully figured out how to manage the drive to keep them happy. I pump as soon as I hear a whimper out of Everett and climb back to the middle seat between the boys to feed Everett a bottle. Then we make a stop and get everyone out for a potty break and some running. We turn on the DVD player towards the end of the 7 hour drive to help entertain Josh... and make the last few hours go faster.

We got together with my friend Bri and her boyfriend Damon Friday night for a few drinks, it was very nice to see them and catch up. G'ma and G'pa had no objections to watching the boys that night. Saturday we woke up and drove to Royal Oak to hang out with Jim's sister Abby, husband Aaron, and girls Izzy and Charlotte. As soon as we pulled up Josh was screaming from the car, "Whats up dudes, I am here, Its Josh, Whats up Uncle Awesome" It was hilarious!

We went to the Detroit Zoo Saturday night for an hour and thoroughly enjoyed watching them race around to see as many of the animals as we could. The best part forsure was the polar bear exhibit. The seals and polar bears can swim right over this underwater tunnel that you could walk through. One seal was doing laps with his eyes closed... and he eventually ran into a big grumpy looking seal. Wow did the kids laugh! It was fun to see them duck everytime the seals would come over the tunnel...

Sunday we went to the Warren community center waterpark near their house. This was going to replace our annual waterpark trip, only because things have been just a bit hectic on both of our families this spring. So we spent a few hours splashing around and it seemed like the kids were perfectly content with this water adventure, and so were our wallets!

That night all the grandmas came in to meet Everett. He was all smiles and enjoyed being held. We got to meet Catherine (Jim's younger sister) new boyfriend Tyler and had some good laughs. Monday we went back to Jim's parents. It was a nice relaxing way to end our trip. They boys did great and we have definitely figured out the sleeping routine.

Tuesday our drive back was a little long. We were all just tired and eager to be home. No real problems, we slept most of the way. It is weird that it is already Tuesday because we usually make the drive on Sunday. Josh spent a good portion of the drive telling us all about the fun he had with his cousins and with g'ma and g'pa. He has a very good memory and is increasing his vocabulary everyday, it is so amazing!

The MN State Hockey Tourney

My brother and his team had officially made it to the MN State High School Hockey tournament. We were so so excited to make the trip back home to watch the games even though we had just been there for the weekend. We left on Thursday and drove straight to my Aunt Mary's in Woodbury to drop Everett off. My Uncle Steve offered to drive us to the Excel Energy Center because the word was it was unbelievably packed and parking was not even close. We got there to see the previous game end and say hello to all the family members. My mom had a special sweatshirt made for Josh that said Pioneers on the front and my brother number and name on the sleeve. He was SO excited!

It was the second time I had been to the state tournament, the first time was when I was in H.S. And I don't remember it being so packed. Literally, the Excel Energy center was sold out. Throughout the tournament they posted the daily attendance and one of the facts they put up on the scoreboard was that the second most attended event a the Excel was a MN State High School Hockey game. The first was a Shania Twain concert. Yep, MN hockey is big. Another fun fact, the entire sections on either side of the rink are for season ticket holders. Leaving the four sections on either end of the ice open for fans of the teams that are playing.

Game one was against Duluth East. It was a good game, although too close for comfort... I want a big lead... 2 goals were fired right away by Duluth... YUCK... my stomach was in knots the entired game. Thankfully before the first period was over my brothers team had scored 2 goals... within 10 seconds of eachother. But Duluth scored a third time, just as the clock ran out for the first period. 3-2... high scoring game. Josh was a riot during the game, watching every second of it, including the little kids during periods and the zamboni. He loved being passed around from family member to family member. In the second period my brothers team came out roaring and scored two games. It was finally looking like they were going to pull it off. My brother scored an awesome goal in the second period to give the Pioneers the final goal of the game. It was AWESOME!

The next day we had to play Minnetonka, the number one team in the State. Everyone knew Hill would have to come out strong right away. Minnetonka had 3 confirmed D1 recruits already. My stomach hurt all day just thinking about it! It was an unbelievable game. Everyone seemed to be on the edge of their seat after the first period. Hill Murray had control over the game right from the start. But they just couldn't sink the puck. Minnetonka got a goal in the first period on one of the first defensive mistakes, but Hill was able to tie it up. The rest of the game was a nailbiter with Hill out shooting Minnetonka 24 shots to 9! It was ridiculous... but puck just wouldn't go in. The game continued for four overtimes... Almost ending once after a goal went in for Minnetonka... but it was called off because it was kicked in. Phew... but the fun was quickly over in the fourth overtime when Minnetonka scored. The place was still packed even though it was 12:30am! They had been playing hockey for 3.5 hours... it was crazy! And yes, Josh was still up and with us but didn't understand how we lost. It was the second longest game in H.S. state tourney history!

The next day we played Apple Valley for third. Hill came out strong with the graduating seniors playing the first line. Within 20 seconds, my brother scored the first goal... setting them up for another strong game, even if they had just played 8 hours earlier! They won 6-3 to take the Third Place title. Not bad. Even though we all knew the play-off game was the game against Minnetonka...

Minnetonka got second by the way... they lost to Eden Prairie and looked like crap... our fans yelled "You are Welcome" to the Eden Prairie fans... basically because Hill had run them down so they were easier to beat.

We went to celebrate after the game at Champps... my brother came down there with his girlfriend and we watch the state final game on TV... My brother got a call as we were sitting there that he had made the All Tournament team. So he drove back to the Excel with my parents... the rest of us watched on TV as he and my parents walked out at the end of the game. My brother also won the Hobey Baker H.S. Character award. As you can tell, I am pretty proud of him!

Everett didn't get to watch any of the games in person, he was able to hang out with our family though. My grandparents watched him for the final game against Apple Valley... with everyone knew watching him I thought it might be good to print out an "All about me" page with some quick notes about Everett. I am pretty sure they all thought I was nuts... but each of them did read it and did appreciate some part of it. My uncle was happy to have our phone number so he could get a hold of us when we needed to be picked up. My grandparents were happy to read that he doesn't necessarily need to be burped. ha ha! So even though they made fun of me... it was helpful. And I didn't give them a 10 minute schpeel before we left.

Our first trip to MN

Everett had his 2 week check-up on Tuesday this week and confirmed what I had been thinking, he was a BIG boy! He weighed in at 9lbs 14.5 oz! He is gaining weight just fine and the doctor says he looks BEAUTIFUL. At this point he is sleeping pretty well already at night, getting up only 2x at night, and really only fusses for three things; hungry, dirty diaper, or tired. He is only somewhat interested in the pacifier and can fall asleep just fine without it which is nice. We are using the "Woombie" swaddling gizmo that my friend Mandy recommended and it works really well. He doesn't like it a whole lot when we first put him in it but once the lights are off and we lay him down he calms right down and zonks out. I kicked Jimbo out of the room and have him sleeping in our guest room because no one was getting any sleep in our house... Josh and Everett were waking up at different times and Jim and I were up for every one of them.

Hilo had his annual checkup this week too and he is packing on the pounds in his old age (4 this April). He weighed in at 65 pounds, 5 more than last year. Vet wasn't worried, just said besure to get him exercise and if we are concerned, we can back off on the quantity of food. Yah, right. That would mean we can't feed Josh... cause that is where Hilo gets all the "treats".

We went to MN to see my brother Jack play in the Senior game. It was a normal season hockey game however they had a special ceremony before hand to honor the seniors. I can't believe he is graduating this year... Crazy that at my high school graduation he was a kindergartner!!! Time flies... now I am married, two kids... OLD! :)

All is calm at the Westwood...

My mom and sister left on Friday morning, so now it was just our family of four left at the Westwood Resort... Jim and I have decided we would be really good at running a B&B... he would make an awesome breakfast and I am getting faster and faster at changing sheets and cleaning bathrooms. Ha ha! :)

We didn't do anything special Friday night, which was perfect. Saturday morning I had class for 3 hours... painful, so glad the rest of it is online. This was the longest I had been away so far from Everett and it was going to require a bottle feeding. Up until this point we had tried to give him a bottle without any luck. He is drowning with the Avent bottles Josh used and the Medela bottle isn't any better. Next up were the playtex nurser and the soothie bottle we had from Josh. I got home to find out that the Soothie bottle worked and he sucked down 3 ounces. THANK GOODNESS! He was still hungry so I nursed him and all was well. I am gathering quite the stock pile in the freezer, we are up to 10 frozen bags of 6 oz each!

That afternoon we ventured to the grocery store and then had our neighbors over that night. It was an early night but nice to have some friends visit. Sunday we had our first attempt at Church. I woke up at 7:15am to nurse Everett which takes about 45 minutes (includes burping/diaper change). I got in the shower at 8am. Usually it takes me 30 minutes to get ready... and I didn' t do anything more than usual, but had to stop to either tend to Josh or Everett a few times. We finally got everyone in the car at 9:22 am... We were going to be late for sure... I hate being late! We ended up having to sit in the very last pew in the back and unfortunately it is really hard to pay attention when you are that far back. The boys were very good though anyway.

We had breakfast at home and then all zonked out for a nice 2 hour nap. We woke up and went to Kim/Jerome/Emma's house for dinner and playtime. After dinner Emma asked if her and Josh could take a bath... and we said no, not tonight. About 10 minutes later Josh asked to go potty so Jim put him in there with a book and Josh kicked him out. Emma snuck in there later to give him a new book. All of a sudden we hear the toilet flush... and then the bathtub water running. Kim and I ran into the bathroom to find the two of them standing there with their pants/undies off and throwing in the bath toys. It was hilarious. And of course we couldn't say no at this point.

Week 1 Home...

This was the first week home with Everett and it was wonderful! :) Everett is sleeping great at night between feedings and is nursing every 3-4 hours. I get a solid 2 hours of sleep in between which is adding up to about 6 hours. Although it isn't my ideal 8-9 hours at night, I am loving it! He is holding his head up for a minute here and there and doesn't mind tummy time. He has been able to lift and turn his head to look at me but does eventually get mad and want to be picked up.

Joshua has been a fantastic big brother and it has been a lot of fun to watch him around Everett. He is very helpful when doing diaper changes and has even given up his favorite recliner/rocker in the family room to let Everett sit in it. During bath time Joshua is in charge of the sprayer but eventually he gives up because Everett is not too happy during bathtime.

My mom and sister arrived Sunday night and stayed through the week to help out. They did a lot of housework, cooking, and played with Josh. Each morning I would wake up with the boys and my sister would come down shortly after that. She would take over and send me back to bed... it was fanstastic! My mom and her spent hours putting together photo albums for Josh using the posts in my blog and the oodles of pictures we have on our computer. I am excited because I have been a serious slacker and haven't even started a baby book for Josh. I admit I was relying on the blog to eventually get me caught up on it, when I found time. But after talking to my mom about the photo books you can make online we looked into it and are going to see how it works out. I think it is worth a try and certainly faster than scrapbooking because I am SO anal! :)

We have made a few adventures throughout the week. Went to the mall to do some shopping, a few trips to the grocery store, and post office, and a trip to the doctors office. It is very important to know that it takes double the time to get out of the house with 2 kids! I have a feeling my hectic morning drop-offs will require me to get up around 5 am... will I ever find time to workout again?? I loved working out in the morning before work... I guess will just have to wait and see... :)

Lots of Help

We had a very short hospital stay since he was born late Tuesday night. Everything went well. I was poked for labs to monitor the pre-eclampsia and on magnesium sulfate until 24 hours after Everett was born (annoying IV's!). My blood pressure was dropping and blood work showed I was going the right direction. So we were released Thursday around noon. We had a few visitors at the hospital but overall just spent some time getting to know Everett. So far he was showing signs of being a pretty mellow baby, although it is still early!

Josh was enjoying his time with the grandparents, skating on the hockey rink in the back yard, and overall getting spoiled. He loved meeting Everett, "my baby sister" as he put it. We are working on getting him to say "Brother". He loved holding him and is a fantastic helper!

Jim's parents and g'ma Connie stayed at our house until Sunday to help out. They did a great job of keeping Joshua busy and entertained. I got lots of rest and Everett continued to do well. He is nursing about every 3 hours at the most. And he sleeps well between feedings at night which is also a plus!

I am doing much better this time around when compared to coming home with Josh. I definitely know that I had some post partum with Josh and am glad to know that is not the case right now with Everett, although I also know it could start up at anytime. I am convinced it is because I am such a planner and even though I thought I was prepared for Josh, I wasn't. I have definitely cried off and on for no reason, but it is definitely less this time around and I just plain old feel better. So crossing my fingers that it stays this way! :)

Everett James Kirkwood

He has FINALLY arrived! And he is PERFECT!

Everett James Kirkwood

January 12, 2010

at 10:17 pm

9lbs 2 oz

20.5 inches long

I had a doctor appointment at 3:30pm on 1/12. I didn't feel particularly different. Had the usual swollen ankles from being on my feet, tired just from being pregnant, and an annoying little headache above my right eye like the type you get when you have a sinus cold. I was very surprised then when the nurse who was taking my blood pressure said, you are going to have this baby tonight! WHAT? Apparently my blood pressure was 130/96. UGH! She said my doctor would not let me go home and was likely going to send me up this evening. I wasn't buying it.

Dr. came in and the first words are, do you have your bags with you? I said no but we could go home and get them. She said, Jim can go home, but you need to get upstairs immediately. She then went on to say how she believes I have pre-eclampsia. She also verified I was at 4cm, 80% effaced, and that the baby was so low she just can't believe I haven't had him/her yet!

So we went up to get checked in and made all the calls to family. Everyone was already on their way here since I was supposed to be induced on the 13th. We had our friends Kim/Jerome/Emma get Josh from school and watch him until Jim's parents arrived. Jim ran home to get our things while I got hooked up to all the monitors and drilled with questions about the upcoming delivery, seriously don't know how anyone can answer all of them when they are in full blown labor, and what is the point of the "birth plan" if they aren't going to read it?

After a mega dose of penecillin the doctor broke my water about 6:45pm. We walked the halls as much as we could to get contractions going, but they continued to do the same thing... although we got them down to 4 minutes apart when walking, as soon as we got back to the room they slowed back down. At this point my lab work had confirmed I did have pre-eclampsia and I was now stuck in bed and given magnesium sulfate which helps prevent seizures. I will admit that this is when I started to get a little concerned but overall was still feeling good.

Sometime around 9pm things started really moving although contractions were WEIRD. Have a ridiculous one for about 3 minutes and then nothing for 5-10. The nurse and doctor weren't sure what was going on, but everyone of the contractions was making things progress, so that is what mattered. Finally - it was time for Everett to be born. 5 minutes of pushing and we had a BIG beautiful baby boy on my chest! It was UNBELIEVABLE!

I had a lot of mixed emotions going into this and wasn't quite sure if I could possibly have that same overwhelmingly in love feeling that I had the moment I met Josh. But it happened. I cried, he cried, I cried more, then yelled - YOU ARE A HUGE BABY!

My doctor was equally shocked because apparently she was concerned he/she would be small. Some other interesting facts, the placenta was 6lbs! And the cord was very thick, hearty, and a perfect spiral. No wonder he didn't want to come out. He was eating like a king!

Big Boy Josh

So I have officially stopped working until this baby arrives. Which allowed me to spend some quality 1:1 time with my little man Josh. He has grown SO much in the last 2.5 years. It is crazy to look back on all the pictures and posts. (Which I have done numerous times in the last month thinking about this new little addition). So today we took it slow getting ready. We watched one extra cartoon before heading to daycare. After I got all my miscellaneous errands done, I went back to pick up Josh. We had a quick doctors appointment to get the flu booster and then we went for a "burger cheese, fries, and ice cream".

This is my weakness. When I am the one in charge of feeding him, I am very quick to give in and head to Tom's Drive-In... Josh loves it and it makes me feel like I ROCK... for a change. He is SUCH a DADDY's Boy. Yes. I am bribing my son. And I am perfectly okay with it. It is our thing. Although he asks where Dad is... I just say "work" and he lets it go.

So we sat down to enjoy or lunch and he was full of stories. He told me all about the jets and how they fly around. He reminded me of how he didn't cry with his shots and about the bandaid on his leg. With every bite he tells me how big he is growing and how he is just like "Jack". (My brother). I couldn't help but look at how much he's grown, we now have conversations, he no longer needs the booster seat or bib, sippy cup, or wetwipes. Although wetwipes still are nice for the dried ketchup on his face.

After literally 30 minutes of him munching, he has finished 80% of the cheeseburger, fries, and 50% of the shake. These are not kid size portions either. I was just watching in amazement. When he likes something, he goes to town. He finally says, "All done Mom".

So I decide to eat the few remaining stubs of french fries and as I put them in my mouth... Josh says loudly, "Ta-ta-ta-TODAY Junior!".

I busted out laughing so flippin hard! Apparently, it was time to go.

He overheard Jim and I saying this movie quote about a month ago and had mimicked it once. Apparently he understands the context too! AH!!!

It was a great way to spend a few hours just the two of us. And definitely memorable. I love that little kid more than anything! Can't wait to see him as a big brother!

Week 38 appointment

The waiting continues. This week my mom decided to stay a few days longer. I had to work, but it was nice to come home for lunch and just hang out. She got to experience first hand the waiting game. It goes a little something like this.

Good contraction. Wait 10 minutes. Good Contraction. Wait 10 minutes. Good Contraction.

This continues for up to 2 hours every day, since December 27th. The time between contractions varies from 15 minutes down to 6 minutes. When they get below 10 minutes I start to get excited and go collect our things. And every time they stop shortly after that. When they start I will walk around the house, try to clean something, or be active because I read and have been told that if they stop when you get up and move, they are false contractions. Well they continue each time like I said for up to 2 hours.

My appointment on Tuesday was interesting. I am definitely tired from lack of sleep these days. Usually sleep a solid 3 hours as soon as my head hits the pillow, then the remainder of the night is spent on trips to the bathroom and tossing and turning. So my emotions already running high from the hormones, are now on overdrive with the lack of sleep. So my doctor comes into the room and in her very upbeat voice asks "How are we doing?". I couldn't even muster a single word... I just started crying. Totally taking her and Jim by surprise! And there I sat crying and trying to explain that I am just "done". My doctor was extremely understanding and was able to list off all the reasons it is normal for me to be feeling this way. Showing progress in labor for my measurements, good contractions each day that get closer together, the false alarm on Sunday morning (trip to hospital thinking my water may have broke), fat ankles, swollen hands, and my lower back constantly throbbing. Yes I love being pregnant! ha ha!

After she confirmed that I was 3 cm dialated, 50-60% effaced, and -1 station... she said she believes the the nurse on Sunday was crazy for saying that I only dialated to a 1. She can only assume I was in the middle of a contraction when she checked. She listened to baby's heartbeat and said it was very strong at 140bpm. She believes baby may have turned, which could explain the change in lower back pain and wanted to be sure that the head was still engaged, so we literally ran to the ultrasound room to check. Baby's head was just very far down. Which is just fine... She ended by offering to schedule me to be induced on Wed Jan 13th if baby doesn't come on its own before that. She said baby was doing very well and is definitely ready. So we went ahead and booked it. YAY! I left still very pregnant, but breathing a little easier and some anxiety lifted. Of course, baby may come on its own before that, but I won't mind!

But the fun continues. On Wednesday at work I had contractions 7 minutes apart during a 1pm meeting. I got up and stood in the back of the room as they continued. They continued. After the meeting I walked out to the farthest production line with our co-op student and went up and down the line showing him where all the log settings were on the machine. Contractions continued. So I called Jim and said, be ready if I call and then ended with, this phone call will likely make them stop so that is why I gave a warning. Jim just laughed. By 3:30pm they were the same. So I decided to head home and see what would happen. At some point on the walk from my office or on the drive home they stopped. Awesome! So this has been the fun for the last 2 weeks.

I have heard from a few moms that they experienced this same thing and they immediately tell me how frustrating it is, which does make me feel SO much better. Sometimes I feel like I am going crazy! I know it will happen when it is supposed to, but it is just a little more stressful this time around since we have to figure out who can be responsible for Josh when it all happens. We have 3 different options that change as the days pass and are dependant on who is available, so we will be covered, we just need to take it one day at a time.

Waiting Continues

I was really looking forward to the next post announcing the arrival of baby #2, however that is not the case. This baby is loving the warmth of my belly and not wanting to come out! So for now I will just catch you up on the last couple weeks.

We had a relaxing week before New Years. Did a lot more organizing and cleaning after all our guests left from the holidays. We were toying with the idea of throwing our annual "family friendly" new years party thinking maybe that would entice baby... but decided not too. We took Josh swimming at the YMCA on New Years Eve day. I even got in the pool despite my suit not quite covering anymore. It felt AWESOME! My back cracked all the way up as soon as I got into the pool, which was something I wanted to happen for about 2 months now! I literally just sat there and stretched in the pool. Floating was so wonderful. After about 45 minutes Josh was done swimming. As soon as I got out of the pool the weight of baby made me realize exactly how full my bladder was... YIKES!

That night our friend Ryan stopped in with his girlfriend Nicole. We just hung out and caught up on life. It was very relaxing and uneventful! I was in bed by 11pm. New Year's Day my parents decided to make the trip out for the weekend, regardless if baby was born. Josh was SO excited for them to get here. He kept wanting to watch out the window, even though I knew it would be a few more hours until they arrived.

The weekend was full of lots of walking trips, which I had been doing since the last appointment. Since it has been so cold, this has meant daily trips to the mall. Hmm... And no, I am not leaving the purse in the car! Hurry up baby! The boys enjoyed their time out on the ice rink. Josh is very determined to skate but not use the chair like we all learned growing up. As soon as anyone takes that hockey stick out of his hand he starts crying and saying "Uncle Jack". ha ha! So Jim and my dad took turns bringing him around the rink. Eventually they were able to let go and he took a few steps on his own. Although he would freak out as soon as he realized it and fall. All in all it was a fantastic weekend and we really enjoyed our time.