Elaina - One Month Reflections.

10 lbs, .5 oz. Above the 97th percentile for height, between 75-90 for weight and head size. Crazy that she's still not the size of Ben when he was born (and we actually went in on her 5 week bday, so she's a little more than 1 month).

The first few weeks with Elaina were super easy breezy. She just slept all the time with no effort on my part. But now that we've hit the four week mark, things are getting a little more challenging. Her naps during the day are a puzzle I'm trying to figure out. I now know what all the books talk about when they say to put the baby to sleep before they get tired. She has a really hard time going to sleep and staying asleep when she gets overtired. And it doesn't take much at all for her to get over tired. She is only awake for about 30 minutes before it's time for her to go to sleep again!

My biggest struggle right now is probably my own brain. I over think things way too much. I stress myself out over what the best way to deal with her sleep is....do I let her cry for a while? Do I comfort her every time she gets upset? Am I ruining her by letting her take one nap per day in the Ergo? Sometimes she's great at putting herself back to sleep after the 30-45 minutes wake-up and sometimes she's not. I spend a lot of time reading suggestions on the internet...but all that does is drive me crazy. I have two websites open right now that give exact opposite advice. One says that the best possible thing to do is to let the baby cry for 15 minutes and wake them up after 1.5 hours of sleep. Another site says that the baby is too young right now to let them cry, so I should pick herup and comfort her whenever she cries. Since I'm indecisive, I can't pick a method that I like, so how I react depends on my mood....Every grunt I hear on the monitor sends a little wave of adrenaline through my body ("noooo! stay asleep!"). My brain goes crazy thinking that maybe it's me who makes my children bad sleepers. Am I turning Elaina into a Ben?? I even think "oh my gosh, she's going to be a terrible sleeper and the Taylor's aren't going to have the patience for this, so I'll have to quit my job just to help my baby sleep". Very rational, I know........

So, other than my crazy brain, things are actually quite good. Since she sleeps so much (or we spend so much time trying to get her to sleep), we don't have a lot of time to interact with her. Joel gets even less time with her since she sleeps almost all evening. He literally gets to see her awake for 10 minutes a day! I love it when she's awake!! I get giddy thinking about the coming weeks/months when she'll be awake more and we will get to know her better!! Her sweetness kills me!! Her cry is the most pitiful thing I've ever heard. God really knows how to design those babies to get exactly what they need! My goodness! Even when my nerves are totally fried and I want to throw things and shoot daggers at anyone who comes within 50 feet of me, I look at her and can't help but melt. At night, she's a great sleeper. On several nights, she's slept for 5-5.5 hours straight. She wakes up and eats for about 7 minutes and then passes right out again for another 3 hours. I sometimes struggle falling asleep, but I'm still getting way more sleep than I thought I would with a newborn! I really have nothing to complain about.

Mornings aren't my favorite...I have a rough time dealing with people in the mornings anyways. I love mornings, but only if I get alone time first!! Right now, I wake up to Ben in my face and am immediately bombarded with 4000 questions. Oooooh, that's rough on my soul. We have a few hours together before we head to preschool or the Taylor's. Elaina hates her carseat, so she screams for the 30-45 minutes it takes for us to get to and from wherever we're going, meanwhile Ben is shouting another 4000 questions at me over the sound of Elaina's crying. So, the first few hours of each morning are rough on my nerves. After that, I'm much better....although dealing with the constant questions from Ben is rough anytime Elaina is crying. It's like my tolerance totally shuts off as soon as the crying starts.

Ben is still totally in love with Elaina. When he holds her, he automatically talks in the most adoring, melty voice. We always have to pry her out of his hands. Although, Ben doesn't like it when Joel holds Elaina because that means Joel can't rough-house.

I do a lot of thinking while I'm nursing Elaina and trying to get her to sleep. I constantly think of ways that I want to improve as a mom/wife...I desperately want more patience with Ben and Joel. During my quiet times, I realize that of course there's nothing more I'd rather be doing than caring for my family...and that I'm THANKFUL for Ben's questions and love the way his mind works. But as soon as I'm in the moment, all that goes out the window and my patience disappears. I wish I could embroider something on my eyelids (I've actually considered getting a tattoo) to remind me that this is what I want to be doing and to be thankful and to be patient, yada yada yada . There's literally nothing better I could be doing with my time than listening to Ben or playing with him....but it's so hard!

Overall, I'm doing better than I thought I would. Joel's internship plus work is keeping him away more than usual. There have been several nights already where I've had the kids all day and he doesn't come home until after bedtime. I'm actually proud that I'm handling things as well as I have. Sure, I've had a few meltdowns, but overall it's good. I sure do love my family!

Ben - Two things

Two recent sweet things that Ben has said:

1) The other day I made him lunch. As I gave it to him, he said "thanks for making me". When I said "you're welcome", he told me he wasn't thanking me for making lunch. He was thanking me for actually making him. Then he wanted me to say a prayer to thank God for making him. So we said a quick prayer and thanked God for making Ben, Elaina, Mom and Dad. I have no idea where that came from, but it was very sweet!

2) The other night, I went in to say goodnight to Ben. Joel and Ben had just gotten done talking about what they're thankful for so Ben asked me what I am thankful for. I said some stuff and then I asked him to tell me a few of the things he had shared with Joel. The first thing is that he's thankful the dinosaurs aren't alive anymore. Second was that lava isn't real (hmmm). And third is that God loves him. Soooooo stinking sweet!

Elaina's first few days

I've been keeping notes in a notebook over the last week and a half. After Owen was born, Chauncy kept asking me questions about recovery and newborns, which made me realize how much I had forgotten about the first few weeks with Ben. So, this time around I wanted to record how I was feeling, etc.

9/6/15
We came home late last night after baby sister finally went pee. This morning, Ben has a cold. Figures!

Ben was holding baby sister this morning. The first two things he said were "Is she going to toot on me?" and then a few moments later "awwwwwww, I yuv you!". Those two comments truly show what his thoughts are :) He also gushed about how tiny her hands were. He kept trying so hard not to cough on her.

I'm feeling great. Just a little soreness and a little tired, but otherwise great! I love that I can eat as normal and get around just fine.

Mom stayed the night last night to help take care of Ben. This morning, the Bailey's came over to meet baby sister, and then Chauncy, Alan and Owen came for a visit. The Starr's came later in the afternoon. We finally decided to name her Elaina Jane Starr. Grandma Ami and Grandpa Dave were visiting Grandma Edna, so I called them to tell them what her name was. I cried when I told them, as did Grandma Ami. Grandma Edna couldn't quite figure out the phone, but I know Grandma and Grandpa will make sure she understands the significance of Elaina's name. They were the first to officially hear Elaina's name.

9/9/15
We took Elaina to the doctor today. The little miss did great. She's 97th and 98th percentile for height and head, and 90th percentile for weight.

I love Elaina's dark, soft hair. She has so much of it! She is so relaxed and calm. So far, she sleeps so much. Her periods of wakefulness are during the day. She just looks around so calmly and quietly. Soooo far, there's no crying that we can't explain or console right away. What a difference this baby is!!

My nipples are very sore. I love feeding her, aside from the pain. My recovery otherwise..."down there" is still pretty sore and swollen, but I've stopped taking Ibuprofen. The only other complain is my back. It's very tired from holding up my very huge boobs and the baby, and my core muscles feel non-existent after the pregnancy. Otherwise, I feel good...just a little tired and a teensy bit of anxiety, mainly about the general safety of my precious children. Having a newborn makes me feel more vulnerable, which I think is a pretty natural feeling.

Ben...I feel bad for Ben. Poor guy had a cold the moment we came home from the hospital, so I felt like we treated him like a leper. Bill and Kathy are here, but I think his energy is a little too much for them. Last night, I was able to put him to bed and give him some one-on-one time. This morning, Joel and I both got him ready just like normal while Elaina was sleeping. I want to be careful to give him lots of love and to be sure not to treat him like he's "bad" when he accidentally loves Elaina too hard or that he has to change all kinds of stuff because of baby sister. He's such a sweetie. He gushes about how tiny she is or about her tiny fingers. He talks to her in a verrrry loving, gentle, gushing voice. I love my babies!!!!

9/15/15
Today was Ben's first day of Preschool. Last night, Ben asked if we were going to drop him off at daycare. When we said yes, he said "What?! But I'm too small!!". Joel had to go to work for a meeting, so I whisked the kids off in the van and we got there just as Ben's class was lining up to walk into the classroom. Ben wasn't allowed to bring Tucker, which I was really nervous about. But he was so brave! His sweet body language told me he was nervous, but there were no tears. Afterwards, he was so excited and had so much fun! The emotions of seeing my big guy starting preschool, plus the emotions of Grandma Edna made for an emotional day today! But, they were all good emotions. While Ben was in school. Elaina and I ran some errands. My sweet girl. She cried a bit in Target, so I took her out of her carseat and held her. She settled right down. I enjoyed my snuggle time with her in the store.

Ben is loving his sister more and more. Today, she was falling asleep in her swing, and he stood by the swing and sang her a song he made up. He just gently sang and sang while he rocked the swing, touched her head and gave her hugs. He loves to hold her and especially loves it when she roots around on his neck and shoulders. He thinks she's giving him kisses. The other night, he was holding her and told her all about the ninja turtles and what cereals she could eat when she gets older. He's so focused on her when he's talking to her. I wish I could bottle up the love and remember it forever. 

Great Grandma Edna

Today, I'm feeling lots of emotions. Yesterday, we learned that Great Grandma Edna passed away. My mom said that her last words, repeated over and over, were Elaina Jane. We named Elaina after Grandma Edna's sister, Elaine. Jane is my Grandma Ami's middle name. Elaine was partially paralyzed due to Scarlett Fever and Polio. Yet, that never slowed her down. She led an incredibly adventurous life and was an amazing artist. My whole life, I've always heard stories about Elaine and Grandma Edna always had so much love and respect for her sister. I'm glad we were able to tell Grandma Edna about Elaina's name before she passed away. Looking at my baby girl this morning, I was thinking of all the potential in her little body. She has the potential to be an amazing woman, just like her Great, Great Grandma Edna and Great, Great, (Great?) Aunt Elaine (and the other women in our family!).

I've also been thinking a lot about the impact that Grandma Edna has had on our entire family. When I look at the admirable traits that were so strong in her, I see those traits passed down to my grandparents, my mom and my aunts and uncles. It's a very strong legacy. I don't even know what traits are the most valuable and how to limit what to write about right now. But, I for sure have been influenced by her childlike curiosity about the world, her attention to detail and her ability to see beauty in everything (One such example...she took a picture once of some flowers (weeds) growing through a crack in the cement...and she marveled at how something so beautiful can grow from something so hard and ugly). After she divorced my great grandpa, she traveled around the world as a cook on ships and a private yacht (mom, can you correct me if I'm wrong?). She made friends all over the world and was completely blind to race, class, or social standing. She truly loved hearing everyone's unique stories and loved learning from them. Everything and everyone was absolutely fascinating to my Grandma. How does one not lose that sense of fascination after almost 100 years on this earth?? I remember last time I saw her, she was telling us how she befriended some men she worked with. They were dirty and scraggly and no one else wanted to associate with them, but my grandma found them to be so fascinating. I think these are the guys who gave her the beautiful marijuana plant. About two years ago, she told Joel and I that she tried marijuana several times, but she found she didn't need it because she already saw the world in such vivid detail. I could write pages and pages about her.

So, today, I am doing a lot of reflecting on my Grandma and my entire family. I'm thankful for her influence and I'm thankful that she infused her outlook on life into the members of my family so that my kids can grow up knowing the same curiosity of the world, open mindedness, and acceptance of others. I have a LONG way to go to give my kids even a sliver of those values, but it's something I think about often and want to improve on.

Elaina Jane's Birth Story

Elaina Jane was born on Friday, September 4, 9:34 pm. She weighed 9 lbs, 2 oz and measured 19 inches long. The post below is a combo of notes I took at home as well as some
I wrote during the night after she was born (there was no way I could sleep after that!!). As I put this all on the blog, it's been a week since she was born and I desperately want to remember her birth!! The intensity of it and the way I handled it, and the way I felt after she was born...my words don't do it justice, but it's the best I can do!

On Thursday evening, around 9:30 pm, I started to have uncomfortable contractions. Joel was at a friends house, so I texted him and told him that he might want to come home and get some sleep since this might be his last chance! The contractions continued all night long but never really got any closer together. Around midnight, I took a bath and took some Tylenol. I was able to get a little bit of sleep after that. The next morning (Friday), I had Joel go to work and Ben went to the Taylor's. I took another bath, ate food, stretched, tried to rest and just did whatever felt good. Throughout the day, I kind of stopped timing the contractions because I knew they weren't consistent and some weren't as intense as others. Around 2:00, I was texting with Sara and Brenna and Chauncy and said I wanted to go get a cheeseburger...but at that same time, contractions started to be more consistent and uncomfortable so no cheeseburger for me! In my notes, I say I took a long shower and noted some tightness in my back. I was starting to feel quivery in my arms and that my focus was changing.

Probably around 3:30, I laid down for a bit, and that's when Joel and Ben came home. Ben wanted to stay with me in bed. Then I got in the bath. After a while, Ben wanted to join me in the tub. I let him and he would pour water on my back during my contractions, which felt really good. When I told him I was having a contraction, he would quietly sit and wait for it to be over. Normally Ben loves playing with Joel, but that afternoon, Joel couldn't do anything to get Ben to leave me. 

At this time, I was still debating whether it was time to go to the hospital. The intervals were quickly dropping, but right up until I actually made the decision to go to the hospital, I still wasn't sure if this was really labor. I was in the tub and called Julie and told her we were heading to the hospital. I was nervous to get out of the tub because 1) the water helped things feel better and 2) I was scared that I would start the terrible shakes as soon as I was out of the water. Mom got to the house and we left IMMEDIATELY. I said to Joel "I hope we didn't leave too late" and wondered if that was foreshadowing what was to come. The drive was not fun because sitting was excruciating, especially during contractions. The drive to the hospital was a little over half an hour.

We got to the hospital at 6:30 pm and my contractions were almost right on top of each other. I'm sure I was quite the show for the people in the waiting room. I had several contractions just walking in the door, then several more as we checked in and waited for the nurses to take me to L&D. Our doula met us in the waiting room. We skipped triage and they checked me right into a room. One nurse checked me and said I was a 9 but another nurse said I was an 8. Who cares. I said I wanted an epidural asap but the whole room was really encouraging me not to. Since I was so close, they didn't think it would provide the relief I thought it would and they thought it would slow things down and end up making me push longer. I was incapable of making decisions, so instead of deciding, I just labored away, standing while leaning over the side of the bed. In my head, I kept thinking that I KNOW I could do it, but I was very worried that I would end up pushing for three hours and the thought of three more hours in pain was NOT APPEALING (turns out it was 3 more hours of pain...but only 1.5 hrs of that was pushing).

We checked in right at shift change and I'm soooo thankful we did. The midwife that was just getting off was way too soft for me. She kept trying to gently hold my hands and tell me lovey, beautiful things. Don't touch me, lady!! We didn't have good chemistry. But I loved the team that came on as soon as we got there!!!! Midwife was Sylvia? And nurse was Amy. Plus my doula Julie. Baby nurse was also named Sylvia, I think.

At some point they made me get back in bed to check me ( I was starting to really need to push). Uuuugh I did nottttt want to lay in bed. But somehow I made it. The details are a little fuzzy but soon after laying down, my water BURST. It felt really good! Then the pushing really started. Again details are fuzzy. I pushed for an hour and a half. I said a few times that I really didn't know how she was going to come out. I had just watched Chauncy pushing a few weeks ago and her nurses were telling her the exact same things they told me...and Owen didn't come out. So I was sure the nurses were just telling me the same, generic encouraging things without actually meaning it.

The "pain" is so interesting to describe. The pressure was Sooo intense and the contractions themselves were very painful (although I hesitate to use the word pain because it's unlike any other pain I've felt). But pushing through the contractions made the pain more bearable. I felt a small amount of burning, but the actual squeezing the baby out of my body didn't hurt neaaaaarly like I thought it would. It was the contractions that hurt!! Even when she actually came out, I didn't feel the huge rush or relief I've heard about. I was IN SHOCK that I had just pushed her out. Whaaaaat????? I've never ever imagined that I would ever give birth without an epidural. I didn't even WANT to. Pain?? Noooo thank you. And here she was, just a few short hours after real labor started!! The midwife and nurses kept telling me not to be afraid of the pain of pushing, and I kept telling them "I'm not!! I don't really feel any pain!"  They were surprised to hear that. What I meant is that I didn't feel pain of her stretching me or anything. Again, it was just the inteeeense pressure of the contractions that were painful.

Her coming out was kind of a blur. I have a quick flash of a memory of feeling flailing arms and legs, and I vaguely remember someone saying she would be here after one more push or something like that. As soon as she was out, they laid her on me, skin to skin and she just lay there totally content for an hour before she started showing signs of wanting to eat. Her cord was really short, but they let it stop pulsing before they cut it. I had a 2nd degree tear that they had to sew up. The stiches weren't fun, but I had a new baby on my chest and I was thrilllllled that labor was over!!

Right now, down there is just really really sore. But other than that, I feel great! Lots of adrenaline and I had the shakes really bad after I delivered her, but those went away fairly quickly (it's 4:15 am as I write this and i still can't fall asleep...almost 7 hours after she was born). Julie stayed with us for at least an hour or so after the birth and it was fun to chat and debrief that whole time with her and Joel and the nurses. It was a happy, relaxed, friendly environment.

I had a few coping mechanisms. For the contractions, I found that shaking my head back and forth really helped. I kept thinking about Ben and how he's comforted by banging his head. When I was shaking my head, I focused on the way the sounds around me changed as my head moved and I wondered if that's what Ben likes about banging his head. I felt like I learned something from him to cope with my labor. The ice cold wash cloths were a lifesaver too. Also, NOT laying in bed or sitting made things WAY more bearable. Sitting in the car and the bed were sooooo uncomfy!!! I did almost all my pushing on my back, but before that, contractions laying down were unbearable!! Leaning against the bed with my stomach hanging down allowed me to toootttalllly relax between contractions. Sometimes I even felt almost relaxed enough to go to sleep!

I also HAD to keep calm and focused and totally relaxed. There was really no other option. If I had let the pain take control, it would have been total chaos and I legitimately would have been acting like a lunatic. There's noooo waaayyyy I could have done it without total calm and relaxation. Every time a contraction would come, I would shake my head but otherwise totally relax. It wasn't until the very end that I had to moan or yell, but even that wasn't helpful....it was more helpful to relax. I have to brag....the nurses and midwives and my doula could not believe how focused and calm I was. For the calmness, I feel like i was channeling my inner Brenna. She had preached to me so many times the importance of staying relaxed during labor. I had her in mind much of the time. If I didn't know Brenna had done it, I'm not sure my success wouldn't have been as good.

Goodness. I can't list all the ways this birth was different from Ben's birth. There's nothing wrong with Ben's birth at all and I have zeeerrrooooo regrets about how that happened. But this one sure has wayyyyy more positives to it (physically). Wooooweeeeee!! For starters, I ate a sandwich very soon after I gave birth. I think she was still on my chest when I ate the sandwich.

Lately

Well, baby sister is almost here. I've got two weeks left until my due date. This summer has sure been an interesting one. We had a few fun trips (Sunriver with the Starrs, Lincoln City with the Smiths and Baileys, and Joel's golf trip with his friends), but other than that, Joel has been working so hard on school work. He's had class three days per week until 10PM, so the last time I would see him would be Monday evening and I wouldn't see him again until Friday after work. He's a way better person than I am. If I had to do as much work as him on so little sleep, I would be a whining, crying mess. The weekday evenings are just Ben and I. With my being very pregnant and the weather being so hot, Ben and I haven't done too much fun stuff. But Ben has been suuuuch a pal to me this summer! For the most part, when I pick him up after work, he has been so cooperative and sweet to me. I try to plan errands to run after work to give me a chance to walk as much as possible inside air conditioned buildings. He just hangs out with me and happily chatters along the whole time.

My pregnancy is still going really well. Right now I'm just feeling big and sleeping is a little uncomfortable because my ribs are all crunched up and various parts of my body get all tingly no matter what position I'm in. But! I still say that I have nothing to complain about. Those minor annoyances are totally manageable! AND I get a weekly massage and weekly chiropractic adjustments. Those make a world of a difference!! People ask me if I have any weird cravings or if there's anything funny about this pregnancy. And really, if I wasn't feeling so big with the occasional ache and pain, I would feel totally normal. I'm not craving anything or feeling extra hungry. I'm not emotional or extra tired...I just feel normal! I'm so thankful for that!! We had an ultrasound to measure her a few weeks ago and she was measuring in the 81st percentile, so fingers crossed she'll be smaller than Ben was! We still have absolutely no idea what we're going to name her. Our list has about 10 names on it. Some days I feel confident that she'll be one name, but three days later I've moved on to another name. My problem is that I like how many of the names look on paper, but they don't sound good to my ears.

I wanted to write down a few things about Ben lately. First of all, his humor and his laugh have suddenly taken a step up the maturity scale. His laugh has become heartier and more mature. He's also been laughing so much more than he ever used to (not that he used to laugh infrequently...but he's just laughing a ton lately!). I love it!

He's been having lots of fun with ninja turtles lately. He even watched his first Ninja turtles episode. It's so fun to watch Ben and Joel play NT together. They put headbands on and run around the house doing ninja moves, listening to the Ninja turtle theme song over and over and over. Ben is super serious about those ninja moves! The other day I took some pictures of him being a ninja turtle...then the next moment, he had fallen and hurt himself and was crying huge ninja turtle tears. My sweet boy. Speaking of JOel and Ben playing together....it's my favorite thing to watch!! How are dads so good at playing?? Joel can play hard with Ben for hours and hours and not get bored or tired or want to do anything else. Me on the other hand...I don't exactly "play". I like to read with Ben, go for walks, cook, chat, or have a tickling fight...but 'playing' does not come naturally to me! When Joel and Ben play, they run and run and get so sweaty. They play all sorts of make believe. Most of the time it involves looking for bad guys or tigers or something. They set up obstacle courses and develop their story as they go along. I love hearing them interact so perfectly together!!! Last night was particularly fun. Ben decided that he needed to keep giving us "kiss and hug power", so every lap around the house, he would cover Joel and I with kisses! That's a rare treat! And then Joel and Ben were chasing Emma around the house and Ben was just dying of giggles and laughter! I was cleaning the kitchen while they did this. Those types of evening are the best!!!


One nice thing that's changing a bit is the fact that Ben doesn't NEED a nap every day. It's nice because it allows us some flexibility if we want to do something. Also, on the days he doesn't take a nap, he goes to bed so fast and easy! But, I'm still not ready to give up nap time....especially with baby sister on the way. Even on nap days, bed time has gotten so much easier. We've started giving him a flashlight at bedtime and he reads books until he's tired and then just turns off his flashlight and goes to sleep. Aaaahhhh! The 1,000 questions each night and an hour of yelling down the stairs to us was getting SO Frustrating! He still wears a diaper at night, but occasionally he shows signs that he might be getting ready to ditch those. The other night, he yelled for me in the middle of the night. He was sitting on the toilet, but nothing was in there. He said that he went potty in his diaper and wanted a new one. So I got him all changed and back into bed. When Joel woke up the next morning, he found Ben sleeping on a pile of blankets on the floor, wearing new basketball shorts and no diaper. Ben said that he had "leaked", so he had changed his own clothes and made himself a bed on the floor. But, he hadn't actually leaked anywhere. I think he had just gone potty in his diaper and didn't like it! My favorite part of that whole story is that he took care of changing himself and making a bed for himself on the floor without waking us up!!

One last cute thing that Ben did recently. The other day at Mrs Taylor's, she was watching two kids: age 6 and 3.5. They called me on their way home and the very first thing Ben told me on the phone was "Mommy! I wasn't a little bit shy, I wasn't a lot shy, I wasn't shy at all!". Then he told me about the two kids and what they'd done that day. When I talked to Mrs. Taylor about how he did with the 2 kids, she said that he just hung back and watched them all day. When they were playing outside, he stayed inside and just watched! But, the next day, Ben warmed up to them more and played with them. It's interesting that he's so aware of his shyness. We never say anything about his shyness to him! When he talks about it, we let him know it's totally ok to be shy as long as he's still polite. Another cute example of his awareness of his shyness is with Kyler. He's gotten totally comfortable going to Kyler's house by himself now. But, everytime he goes over there, he explains that he wants to bring Tucker because Tucker makes him feel not as shy or scared...but that if he doesn't have Tucker, sometimes he feels a "little" scared. He still remembers the time several months ago that he went to Kyler's without me and got REALLY scared and cried and cried and cried.

So, that's all for now. This weekend is the first weekend of the summer that Joel hasn't had to do 40,000 hours of homework. It could also very well be the last weekend as a family of three!! EEK!! My to-do list is a mile long and I'm feeling a frantic drive to get it all done (writing a blog post was part of that to-do list). But we also have our brand new, sweet nephew, Owen to go see!!! I need more weekend!!



The Jorgenen's had extra tickets to a Tacoma Rainier's game. The boys LOVED it. We stayed through the 8th inning and their excitement was high the entire time!

Ben's faces just kill me!!

Ben helping me make some decorations for baby sister's room

Ben and I went to Wildwood park. My thought was that he would want to play in the little creek. But, what he really wanted to do was hike around and hunt for bad guys. Well, all the trails are really steep and tons of spider webs! So, nine-month pregnant me was hauling up and down steep trails, trying to avoid spider webs in the face and helping Ben up and down. Phew!

 

 

Steve organized a very nice birthday celebration for my mom. Joel and Ben missed this photo cuz they had taken off to the park. We ate at Mediterranean Kitchen in Bellevue. OMG! Amazing food!! It was just our immediate family, but there were still 17 people there (well, 19 including the two babies in bellies) :)  

Chauncy, Alan, Joel and I went to the Of Monsters and Men concert at Marymoor park 2 weeks ago (exactly 1 week before she gave birth!). We love concerts at Marymoor!! The setting is so beautiful and relaxed and we just stood up at the front and danced the whole night!

Grandma Bev and Grandpa Steve watched Ben while we were at the concert. We're so glad Ben doesn't miss us AT ALL when we're gone!!

Here's my little Ninja turtle....

And his sweet Ninja turtle tears :(

He is SUCH a pal!! I love my buddy!!

Baby Owen Faulkner

Chauncy and Alan had their sweet baby on Sunday (August 16th, 8 lbs, 7 oz and 20.5 inches). Her due date was August 21. On Friday, she thought maybe her water had broken. It was a false alarm. However, it meant that something was probably starting to happen. On Saturday, she was feeling more uncomfortable than she ever had...but the way she explained it, I thought it was all in her head.  Saturday afternoon she was having contractions 11-14 mins apart that were "uncomfortable". At 9:37 PM, after I had gone to bed, I got a text that said "Eh, ouch". Next thing I know, it was 5 am and she was in the hospital, 4cm, just getting an epidural. WOOHOO!! Just three hours later she was 7cm. We thought for sure the baby would be here soon!

Ben and I had a date planned that day in Seattle. So, we headed to Seattle and had donuts at Top Pot then headed to the Pacific Science Center. He was such a fun date! We were at the science center for several hours, but Chauncy wasn't making much progress. bummer. Ben and I killed some more time by playing in the fountain and the awesome park outside the EMP (there's an awesome rope climbing thing! He loves to climb, so that's all he ever needs at a park!!). We then had a late lunch at McDonalds (his first McDonalds ever). At this point, Chauncy was pushing and was up for a visitor. I thought for sure Owen would have arrived by the time we made it to the hospital. So, my tired little buddy and I drove to Kirkland. I promised him a popsicle if he was good in the hospital (I know. My food choices for him that day were outstanding). Alan watched Ben in the waiting room while I went in to see Chaunc. She looked so good. She was exhausted and very frustratred from being up all night and from pushing for so long with no progress...but she still looked great. I had no idea what to say to her to encourage her!! I didn't stay long because she wanted Alan in the room and there's no way I was going to bring Ben in!

On our way out of the hospital, Ben's bottom somehow got really pinched in the escalator. My poor, tired buddy was soooo sad. So of course he got a popsicle!! But, he took three bites of it in the car and then told me his tummy was done with it. Two seconds later, he was out like a light.

Chauncy ended up pushing for another hour and then Alan texted to say she was going in for a C-section. My anxiety went into high alert. Not only for her, but also thinking that I would be doing this whole thing in a few weeks. After the C section, Owen had to go to NICU for some monitoring. At the time, we didn't have much information, so Brenna and I were kiiiiind of nervous. But, he was fine. Just a little stressed. Poor Chaunc was in her hospital room all by herself. Alan didn't want to be alone with the baby in NICU, so my mom was with Alan and Brenna and I were getting our kids ready for bed, so we couldn't drive all the way to the hospital. Alan and my mom sent some sweet, sweeeeet pictures of the little guy. I couldn't stop staring at them!!!

The next day, I had an interview at work. What a joke. There was NO WAY I could think about anything else besides Owen (and also my upcoming birth.....yikes). After work, I headed up to Kirkland. Chauncy and Alan were sleeping, so Brenna, my mom and I took shifts holding Owen while they slept. I loved the time to just soak him up!!! I didn't really get that with Lucas (he was the first nephew and I had zero idea of what to do with a newborn or what to do for Brenna). With Eli, I didn't see him in the hospital, plus I was preparing for my first baby to come! With Aldon, I didn't see him until a while after he was born. So, the experience of just holding Owen quietly and sitting with Chauncy and Alan for a few hours was special! He is such a sweet little guy! He would scream when they unwrapped him, but would settle right back down after he got bundled up again.

The coolest part about visiting them was to see the INSTANT change in Chauncy and Alan as parents. Holy smokes! Chauncy was exuding something I've neveeerrrrrrr seen from her. It was a relaxed confidence + love for her baby. I wish I could explain it better. It was soooo beautiful! And Alan instantly switched on his "super dad and husband" switch! It was cute seeing him with the doctors and nurses. Everything they said, he wanted to know whether that was a good thing or a bad thing. When my mom mentioned that Owen had rolled onto his side while he was sleeping, they were both VERY worried about that. I know Joel and I were worried about the little things when Ben was born, but watching them in the hospital room, it was kind of comical (and very sweet) how concerned they were!!

So, now it's been a few days since he's been born. Chauncy is totally focused on her baby and sleep (how could you not be?!). But oh man, I miss her!!! I miss texting and emailing with her all day long! When she does text Brenna and I, we're hungry to hear as many details as we can and see as many pictures as possible! But, obviously, we're not her priority right now so we take what few details we can get! Joel, Ben and I are going to go up there today or tomorrow so Joel and Ben can meet Owen and we can all soak in that sweet family together!