Quick Update

I have my mom's computer (we don't have internet at home--I prefer to use my time with the boys when I'm home since I usually have so much time at work to play online, maternity leave is kind of lonely though). We're adjusting to life with 3 kids fairly well. Claire sleeps in 3-5 hour blocks at night and is generally a joy during the day. She has a few alert periods during the day and is a lot of fun. She LOVES to eat and only is really upset when she can't eat as quickly as she would like. We have still been running around, Farm Country, campfire, children's garden, big gardens, and trafalga all since we got home from the hospital Thursday. I really need to learn to slow down and enjoy being home. Healing has gone very well from my C-section, I've only needed a couple of percocets since being home and hardly even need my Ibuprofen at this point. I am SO blessed, the Lord sure has taken care of my little family. Gotta run, here's some pics:

Hospital pics, LOVE them!
Little feet
My gorgeous baby! Of course I am biased
Last day in the hospital


Going home
First time in her swing
Bundle of love

My cutie boysLOVE their sister!
Almost a week old
My 3 kids! I love this shot
First time in stroller
C&D in the gardens
Carter
Big D

Welcome Baby Claire!

She's here! It felt like my pregnancy was going to last forever and then all of a sudden it was over and didn't seem so long after all, lol. Yet here I sit typing with one hand as my little miss is eating away. What a differene 5 weeks in the womb makes! She wants to eat and has a strong suck--she even (with the help of wonderful nurses) let me sleep for a 4 hour block!

Anywho, let me rewind to record my birth story. We dropped the boys off with Sina (SIL--thank you!) and headed in around 10:30. We stopped off to say hello to my lab friends and then I was admitted to a room (103). I got changed into a gown and they monitored the baby for a bit (Does she ever stop moving ? was Debbie's question--she was an active fetus for sure!). Lots of admit questions then my IV, which 4 pokes and 2 valves later was the worst part of the whole process--and it wasn't THAT bad, but yes it hurt and yes I deserve it for all the people I have poked over the years. I don't have great veins to begin with and not eating or drinking for 8 hours didn't help (I did get up and have Chili's to go at 3 am. :)) My mom and Lowell's mom joined us and then I walked down to the OR (I had a good contraction on the way, but nothing new, still have never actually been "in labor" or even checked for that matter.) It is really strange having a scheduled C-section I have to say, so calm, quick, orderly. I climbed up on the little table and got my spinal--the nurse anesthetist was amazing (my nurses too)--a great injection in 1try and very personable and patient as well. He was on it when my blood pressure dropped and I was hardly even anxious about being "paralyzed" which bothered me the last time. And just like that they were ready to go, but hadn't called Lowell or the grandmas yet, eek! I was relieved to see Lowell and he made it just in time. We entered the room at 11:59, first cut was 12:17, Claire was born at 12:21 and I was back to my room, with the baby already waiting for me at 12:45. You have to admit that's a crazy way to have a baby! I couldn't see much but I could hear them suctioning her so I knew she was out and started crying. They brought her to the table to check her out and I could just see her arms flailing and could hear her wailing of course. I didn't catch the drama from where I was, but I guess this is when something unusual happened, something the respiratory therapist hadn't seen/heard in 18,000 births--Claire had a 5 second long fart. Seems humorous but it wasn't normal for a newborn straight out of the womb to have so much air in her tummy. But 2 x-rays and a neonatologist consult later, it was decided she was fine, just unusual--what a thing to be famous for!

This has been typed in several sittings--as restful and wonderful as it has been in the hospital, I still have an active hungry newborn to distract me. I could just hold her all day truthfully and that is what I have been doing for the most part. They say you can't spoil a newborn, I hope not! So after the baby got the all clear from the xrays I tried feeding her which was a struggle at first. She was upset and wanted to eat, but would latch and not suck. It took some glucose water and a few feedings, but she is getting to be a pro now. The first day we had to wake her to eat a few times and the second day she just wanted to be eating/sucking all the time. Today my milk is starting to come in and she seems a bit more content already but still likes to be eating. She has been very alert and active especially with her arms. More so than the average newborn according to the nurses. We of course think she is gorgeous and just amazing!

We've been blessed with lots of visitors as well. First of all her big brothers of course who just love her. They are so giant and active though! After a day alone and quiet in my room it has been a little overwhelming when they have come to visit. It will be an adjustment, it just takes time for us all to settle in to each other. I think it will be easier at home too since there are so many distractions (and breakable things) in my hospital room. We have had lots of co-workers come by as well as family and friends. I have really felt so much love.

I'm here for the rest of today and will be heading home to reality tonight. I am sure there are those who can't wait to get out of the hospital, but it is a down-right spa for me. Resting, meals brought to me, plenty of babysitters, it has been lovely. It will be good to move on to the next thing too. And I get to take my baby home with me this time--it's so amazing to have a full term baby. No tubes or alarms, she has a great suck and desire to eat, she's so alert and portable--definitely worth those last weeks of discomfort. And she wasn't too big either, 7lbs even and 21 inches long. Dark hair and eyes (so far) and long fingers. She has lost a little initially but is rebounding already.

K, here's some pics (in reverse order)

K, now I deleted one, I'll post more later, the boys meeting Claire
Me meeting Claire
Moments old
Ready to burst!

I'll update more later.. .

Sunday on the Blog

It's been a while since my last Sunday on the blog, but this song struck me this morning, so I wanted to share.

How Firm a Foundation

1. How firm a foundation ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in his excellent word;
What more can he say than to you he hath said?
You, who unto Jesus, for refuge have fled.

2. In ev'ry condition - in sickness in health,
In poverty's vale, or abounding in wealth,
At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea,
As thy days may demand, so thy succor shall be.

3. “Fear not, I am with thee; O be not dismayed!
For I am thy God, and will still give thee aid;
I'll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand,
Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.

4. “When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not thee o'erflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

5. “When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace all-sufficient shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design,
Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

6. “E'en down to old age, all my people shall prove
My sov'reign eternal, unchangeable love;
And then, when grey hairs shall their temples adorn,
Like lambs they shall still in my bosom be borne.

7. “The soul that on Jesus hath leaned for repose,
I will not, I cannot, desert to his foes:
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I'll never - no, never, no, never forsake!”

Quick Recap of the Week

So somehow even though we have been busy and have had plenty of photo worthy moments, I have no pics to share. I was tempted to just skip posting until I do, but I don't want to forget after newborn sleepies take effect. Because we are meeting our baby girl in less than 2 days! Monday at noon is my scheduled repeat C-section.

Anywho, preschool has been going well. I was concerned that the increase number of days/week (from 2-4) would be hard as they go to school so much more now (at least to me) but they haven't had an issue with it. They love their "girlfriends" and are really just extremely social and charming little men. Neither Lowell nor I would consider ourselves particularly social, so we're not sure where they get it from, but glad it works for them. They have been working a lot of handwriting which I am thrilled with as it is the skill that needs the most help. Really fine motor is the only area they struggle in. The teachers are so caring and this year they are divided into an older class as well. It is just working out so well. And it is reasonably priced especially considering the time they go and the teacher/student ratio but I still considering it a hit to the budget. 2 kids at once is just going to be pricey, no way around it.

I have tried to use my time wisely while they are away. I have been organizing closets, grocery shopping, and folding laundry. I didn't get near as much done in the 2 weeks before the baby as I would have liked, but did my best. I also enjoyed a day walking the gardens with my mom and getting a pedicure (I want my feet to look pretty when I am able to see them again! :)).
We have enjoyed the evenings when I am off as well. With school I just don't get much time to do additional activities with the boys the days I work. I am working on it as it is sad to me to just run them here and there and then hurry off to work. This week we did get a chance to go to Trafalga with A&A after preschool but before work and that worked out really well. They were in little boy heaven with their best friends--roller coaster rides, bumper boats (by themselves!), rock wall climbing, and laser tag. What a party! They called laser tag "I spy" and really really enjoyed it. It helped that we were the only ones playing so the 4 boys and the moms were the only ones in there, they just ran and giggled and laughed. The service was so much better this time than last. I'm not sure what changed but we didn't have to wait long at all for anything and could ride whatever we wanted and the rock climbing helper was especially patient and kind to the kids. 2 thumbs up!

We also went to Trafalga in Orem as a family one night last week and had a good time. The gold course is pretty run down (in my opinion) but the kids don't play for real anyway. They just like to roll the ball in the holes that lead somewhere and then see where they end up. We did all the XD movies (a 4D theater where the seat moves and is in 3D, etc)--they're just 10 minutes or so each. And they were pretty fun, I was laughing and smiling and the boys were digging it. I think little sister wasn't so sure but the guy said it was okay for pregnant women. That pass has turned out to be a good purchase already.

I also got some girl time this week. Saturday I went to a Super Saturday craft day for the twin club and made some fun stuff. Plus got to chat and eat, always a bonus. And then this week we had mom's night out with a gal who taught about couponing. I actually missed the class part as I stayed to get the boys down and give Lowell a break, but caught the eating and visiting part--so it all worked out. I sure love those gals!

Speaking of my dear friends, Reva kept the boys last night so Lowell and I could go to dinner, wasn't that the sweetest thing?! It was her boys' birthday party, but I had intended on staying. Hopefully we can still be friends after that! (She said they were fine, but they sure had attitudes on the way home so I think she was just being nice--sorry Reva!).

I owe a thanks to my mom too who helped me take the boys for a few hours so Lowell could have a break (the boys have been so cranky lately [sleep/bedroom change perhaps?]). We went to JoAnn's to get stuff for Claire's blessing gown (I'm working on the beading at work today), out to lunch with a play place, and then for a good long walk around the gardens. They were even nice boys for the most part. They saw a snake (1 live, 1 dead), fish, a crane, and 3 frogs. It was during an art festival where you could observe the artists at work and they seemed quite intrigued by that. I sure love the gardens.

Oh and we made another trip to Silver Lake to just walk and be at peace. It wasn't quite as nice as the first time (I was contracting away and the boys were tired and hungry) but it was still nice. Lowell knows how to appease his wife, I sure love him too!

Did I mention earlier that we moved the boys? Their rooms aren't entirely finished but they are sleeping down there. Today we should be getting the crib for Claire's room. Lots of things in flux at our house but what is done is looking nice and working well. I'll post pics when we get everything settled.

A lot accomplished in a couple of weeks and a lot of enjoyable things for me especially. And all along I didn't think I would even have this time! I feel pretty foolish for all my talk about going early but I do have 3 excuses. 1-I've never been in true labor (water broke with the boys then immediate C-section) so I am still a novice at that and wasn't sure what to expect. 2-I am nearly 5 weeks more pregnant now than I was when I delivered the boys. I just felt like I should be done. 3-With all the contractions I have had, I think a lot of people would have thought their baby would be here soon. I had a lot with the boys too but was done sooner plus Braxton-Hicks actually increase with your 2nd pregnancy. I really do think I have been in prodromal labor--basically an extended early labor that doesn't really progress to anything. It is very tiring and lame. I can have 10+ contractions an hour, many of them painful. I should probably add a 4-that I have too much free time on my hands at work to look up labor symptoms or read birth stories. Sigh. Sorry for the non-excitement.

But this time for real, this little one will be here and soon. I am trying to keep my nerves at bay but they are certainly there. I think every woman upon finding out they are pregnant has to come to grips with the fact that this growing entity will have to come out some how. I think a C-section is actually the easy way out but it is not without fear nonetheless. I don't love getting IVs, getting a spinal, or being strapped to a table. I have major anxiety involving not being able to move my legs too, I don't know why it bothers me so much but it just makes me crawl. So I am not looking forward to that feeling or the painful procedures leading up to the birth. And I can't say I am anxious to recover from major abdominal surgery either (although I have to admit staying in the hospital will be a mini-spa moment for me, a chance to rest and not be hurting/nauseous/have to pee all the time). And of course all of that will be worth it when I hear my daughter cry for the first time. For her to become a real little person and see what she looks like and to watch the boys meet her for the first time, etc. Nervous and excited. Well, lots more pics to come in the next post! ;)

Baby Shower, Trafalga, and 7 Peaks

Another busy couple of weeks for us, and in case you are wondering . . .that little floating baby on the side bar is still floating away. I don't think she has near as much room as the computer baby though and only 13 days to go (C-section at 39 weeks). So, with that out of the way I'll back up to the Saturday before last when I had my baby shower! :) My mom and sisters threw it for me (okay, I did a lot of it too) and we did a meal assembly shower with a website I found. Basically I had the recipes and all the ingredients prepped and everyone came and assembled it for me. It was a little crazy, but yea for this freezer:

That's 30 frozen meals with basic re-heating directions. So for a whole month after Claire comes (longer if you count times we eat out or with the family) there will be meals I don't have to plan or even necessarily cook. Ahh, dinner bliss! Thanks to everyone who helped and if anyone reading wants the details, let me know. I think it is a nice way to do a baby shower for 2nd and beyond babies. I still got some really fun pink stuff for Claire too--check out this one from my cousins:
Isn't it amazing? I was so impressed, I didn't even want to open it. There were diapers, onesies, baby lotion, ribbons, receiving blankets, and a toy in there! Yes, I am totally spoiled, you gals are too too sweet. We had good food and visiting too, thanks again to everyone who came.

We did make it over to the Legacy Center to fulfill my promise that we would after swimming lessons and after they opened again. We had a good time and I could tell marked improvement in their swimming skills, so yes, the lessons were worth it. Not that they are swimming laps or anything but I think if they accidentally fell in they would be able to get themselves back to the side and out again (not that I would EVER leave them alone near water still). They also seem to have picked up a healthier fear of the water, not that they aren't still total fish and adore being in the water, but they seem more timid about being in alone which is a good thing in my book. Especially for my little risk takers. Did I mention they learned how to light the grill themselves this week? Thrill.

We also had a play date with our best buds A&A and I loved the time visiting with Reva. Good friends are hard to find in this world, having one is a huge blessing. Having one with twin boys the same age who love to play with each other is just amazing!

And I bought a new pass . . .yes I know we have passes everywhere but ours to the zoo, aquarium, and children's museum have all expired and I was looking into renewing a couple of those when a great deal came along. I may still renew some of those later, but this new one is keeping us entertained for the time being. On citydeals.com I picked up passes for our 4 for Seven Peaks, Trafalga Lehi (formerly Legacy Land), Trafalga Orem and a couple local sports teams for $35 each for the year. Seven Peaks (large water park) alone is much more than that and we have frequented both Trafalgas in the past spending $20-$30/time (for non-locals they have little kid rides, mini-golf, race track type activities) so to get unlimited to all of it for that price was great. You can also get the passes at those locations for $40/each right now. So of course with new passes in hand I had to abuse them! First we went to 7 peaks as it was about to close for the season. We went on Weds evening and the boys loved it. I was surprised just how much they had to do and the water was heated and nice. They were chilled as we left (the sun was going down) but happy and I enjoyed the time with the weight off my hips.

Then Friday we went to Trafalga Lehi. I was disappointed that they did not have enough staff for all the rides (same complaint I had when it was Liberty Land) but we managed to still do most of what we wanted and had to drag the kids away. Having an unlimited pass was so nice, the boys rode the little roller coaster 7 times in a row without getting off. They were loving it!

Lowell also took the boys on the go-karts.
And we all played on the bumper boats.
You can just tell that Carter is wet, I was drenched! It was a really good time. I've been wanting to squeeze some last fun activities in before school starts/the weather really turns/the baby comes, so this was perfect!

Sunday we had family over to celebrate Labor Day with a hot dog BBQ and it was a lovely evening with the kids having such a great time with their cousins and Lowell and I enjoying chatting away. We are so blessed to have family close.

Then Labor Day we lived it up for our "last day of summer". Here summer will be around for a while yet, but it is true that it changes after labor day. The kids are in school, the days are getting shorter, the leaves are changing on the mountain, BYU is playing every weekend . . .times are changing. I do like fall though, I hope the temps stick around a while, this week is all 70s and 80s. So for Labor Day we went to 7 Peaks again to get our last chance in and Lowell's brother and his family came too, so that was an added bonus (they picked up the pass too, so they can be our playmates, A&A too--we're going to be partying it up!). Unfortunately it was cooler outside, 75 or so but we thought with the warm water it would be fine. Except this time the water was cold. I'm not sure what made the 2 days different, but that was a real bummer. We still played for a couple of hours, had fun in the wave pool, and Lowell took the boys on the "big" slides (no pregnant women--I was so jealous, next summer) but they were just too cold to stay all day. They kept laying on the warm cement next to each other and shivering in unison. Strangely cute actually. We did splurge a little and go to the mall food court for lunch (when did that get so expensive?) and to Sub Zero to get fun ice cream made by freezing cream and mix-ins with liquid nitrogen (I did have a discount, but it was still more than we would normally pay for a treat). The boys did think it was really cool though and I quite liked the ice cream I had. Davis was asleep before we even got home, such a full day!

But that wasn't it, then Lowell and I went to the Thanksgiving Point Labor Day Luau. My sister Hillary got us discount tickets and Dinda was kind enough to sit with the monkeys and get them to bed. I remember going to a similar event almost as big with the boys, so it was nostalgic to me to go again, except it ended up being totally different. I started contracting strongly and regularly pretty much as soon as we got there. I changed positions and they kept coming so Lowell started timing them for me. They were less than 5 minutes apart so I worked on eating my dinner in between and waiting out an hour to see if this was the real thing. Here's us in between contractions (the boys set the camera to sepia and I hadn't gotten it set back yet):

Yes, I look huge, I am 37 weeks pregnant after all. The food was quite good but I couldn't finish it with the contractions. Hillary left to sit with the kids so I could go to the hospital and get checked out (thanks Hill) but I wanted to make sure they wouldn't just send me home. We walked a little and they kept coming, but then we sat to watch the show for a bit and they slowed down. We stopped at WalMart and they slowed even more so we just went home. We were both pretty disappointed. It's really not time yet, we just thought that was it you know? Oh well, sooner or later. And it was a lovely evening still, one I'll remember anyway. And thanks to my attentive hubby who rubbed my back and played stop watch. This is different for both of us as last time my water just broke at 34 weeks without much laboring. We're both pretty anxious to meet this little girl.

So today was the boys' first day of preschool:
Don't they look grown up? It kills me!
Carter
C and his All about me poster
D and his poster (they were really excited about it and insisted on me taking their pic with it)
Handsome Davis

It was harder on me than I would have thought. I have been counting down to this day for a while but they are my play mates and little buddies, it's hard to send them off 2 hours/day, 4 days/week and to see them heading off on their own little lives. They were very excited to go though and went right in and sat down on the circle like they are supposed to (same preschool as last year, so they remember). If it wasn't that I know the teachers genuinely love and care about them it would have been harder, but they do. I celebrated my time by going to a doctor appt (ha! getting sick of that, only 1 more to go, maybe) and then going out to Kneaders for breakfast, yum! I even still had time to clean out one closet and pack up some old clothes and of course the boys were happy when I picked them up. They are just growing up too fast darn it! The teachers agreed that they changed a lot over the summer and are growing up. Well, at least with October birthdays I get to hold onto them an extra year before public school, not that preschool is that different (just more expensive. :)). Sigh, I miss my buddies.

So, this may or may not be my last post before the "big event" so I thought I would record a few memories of this pregnancy for Claire while they are fresh. I think I can safely say that while this has been an uneventful pregnancy, it has not been an easy one. I am still Zofran dependent if I don't want to feel sick all day. I cut back to half-dose a couple months ago (relieved some of the constipation issues Zofran causes) but I still have to take the 1 dose every day. And Prilosec every other day if I don't want to be spitting acid. I've had a fairly common issue among pregnant women involving the pubic bone that causes a lot of pain when standing up or rolling over. I've also had intermittent problems with sciatica. I have significant trouble sleeping now and have also had issues with headaches earlier on. I have also had consistent Braxton-Hicks contractions since 17 weeks, growing in intensity and frequency. I have a hard time digesting (so just avoid) salad, raw vegs, yogurt, and peanuts. I have an aversion to and generally avoid all types of chicken, but chicken breast most of all. My most major craving has been fruit in all its varieties and applications, most of all oranges, apples, watermelon, and out of the blue dried apricots. I also dig salty things and occasionally chocolate. Easily my favorite part of this pregnancy is fetal movement. I have adored feeling little sister move since around 15 weeks. She seems to have her preferences as well based on this movement. She likes music and especially to be sung to (I oblige as often as possible, but only in the car!). She doesn't like Lowell's harder rock music but seems to prefer him personally a lot, snuggles up and refuses to kick when he touches her/me. Everyone else gets booted, she doesn't like anyone to be in her "space" from the dogs to the kids. She falls asleep when I rock the boys and is most active in the late evening. She's been head down most of my later pregnancy and though slower moving now was quite an active little thing from the time I could feel her. Now she mostly wiggles but also sometimes tries to push her way out of the top of me. She is quite strong. We all adore her--the boys are very interested in everything to do with the baby and will tell anyone who will listen that their mommy has a baby in her tummy and that she is their little sister and that we are going to name her Claire.

We'll keep you posted with anything new on the baby front . . .I will be taking 8 weeks off after she arrives and we do not have internet at home. I have plenty of time to kill and fast internet at work, so I usually only use it here. I'm away from my bubbas enough that I like this set up, no distractions from them when I am home. Except without being at work I will be less accessible. Lowell does have internet on his phone and at work, plus the grandparents have it-so I will be around just not as much. Be patient with me. Thanks!

I almost forgot to mention my pamper myself day if I make it to 38 weeks coming up Saturday. I am getting a massage, pedicure, and going to a Super Saturday event with the twin club. Woot! Almost makes me want to make it to Saturday (almost . . .why am I so impatient?!)