Wednesday, March 26, 2008

A special treat

I love the snow. I love watching my kids run to the window and peer outside in awe. There's nothing like the serenity, beauty, and magic of snow. I can't believe that I was just talking about the sunny weather on Gavin's birthday, and two weeks later it's snowing again. This state is crazy.

When we were driving to Awana, Jacob and I were bubbling over in excitement about the huge snowflakes falling. Here were some funny comments he made:

J: Mommy, is it Christmas?
J: Is it winter again? (Because it couldn't possibly be snowing in spring, right? ;)

Later on, when I was tucking him into bed:
J: It was a BIG snow day today!
J: Mommy, that was a good treat. Did I get that treat because I was good at Awana?
M: Do you know who gave you that special treat? God did, because he loves you.
J: Ohhh..
J: Thank you God for my special treat of snow!

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Easter day

We spent Easter at my sister's house. Grammy brought cookies to decorate...

The cousins gave each other some love...

The kids went on an Easter egg hunt...



Then we went to my sister-in-law's house for the evening. They were celebrating Evan's second birthday as well. To Jacob and Gavin's delight, they got to go on another egg hunt! Gavin really had the egg hunt thing down by this point. He didn't want his basket to slow him down, so he picked up as many eggs as he could and ran them back to his basket!



Happy Easter!

Easter egg masterpieces

We had fun dying Easter eggs this year. Jacob would carefully place each egg in the dye, waiting patiently until the color was just right. Gavin grabbed his eggs, plopped them into the cups of dye as fast as he could, and reached to grab them out seconds later. It was messy, but we had a good time.

After dying the eggs, we immediately started peeling some to see if the boys would actually eat them. To my surprise, Jacob loved the eggs and ate everything but the yolk. He would nibble the egg whites off and leave the ball of yolk on his napkin. Gavin, on the other hand, spit his egg out as soon as he tried it. (I think he expected it to be candy :)

Then he thought he would try the egg without peeling it first.
I think this is a good look for him though. :)

Monday, March 24, 2008

Our big news

Thank you for all of your enthusiastic comments and kind wishes for our new baby. We are very excited to watch our family (and my tummy) grow!

I have to admit, we were skeptical about having three children. Adam has always had his mind set on two and I always thought two as well, possibly three. We never really talked about it much until Gavin was about 1 and a half. The exact age Jacob was when we found out we were pregnant with Gavin. It was then that we thought, wait a minute... this is when we were pregnant last time. We had to make the decision soon if we wanted to have one more. Mostly because it was important to Adam for our kids be around the same age apart.

We talked about it a long time, even to the point of making a list of pros and cons. It was then that we realized the pros of having another baby (another child to love, more than one sibling to bond with, getting to experience those precious moments one more time) outweighed the cons for us (the chaos of three kids running around, more work, etc). But three is our max... for real.

We agreed that the first years with three kids would be hard, but once they became a little more independent... it would get easier. Jacob will almost be in kindergarten, so he will be a good helper. I also called my good friend, who knows first hand what having three kids is like. It was a breath of fresh air to hear that her third child has been the easiest transition so far. So now we just have six months to get Gavin out of this crazy "terrible two" stage he is in. ;)

So to catch everyone up, I am seventeen weeks along. I could swear that I first felt the baby kick around fourteen weeks, and three or four times since. I have not been sick at all, which I am very grateful for. Although I craved Cheetos and the thought of teriyaki made me sick with the first two, I don't have any cravings or aversions with this one. It's like I'm not even pregnant... except for being ridiculously tired in my first trimester, crying at the drop of a hat, and now, my growing tummy.

My due date is August 30, so that means we get to pick the date sometime the week before. I'm really excited about having a summer baby (after having one in December and one in March). Some say being pregnant in the summer is miserable, but I'd rather lay around my house than teach in my third trimester anyday! We are very excited for the new little life we will bring into this world. It's going by so fast already!

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Two years (and a few days) ago...

I thought that since I shared Jacob's birth story, I would share Gavin's as well. The days leading up to his birth were actually pretty eventful. Having had one C-section, we had the option of either having a second C-section or trying for a VBAC. We were torn by this seemingly simple decision for months.

We wanted to try for a VBAC, but I had done a lot of research about the potential risks and they scared me. The chances of something going wrong were slim (I was considered a optimal candidate due to the fact that my last C-section was caused by Jacob's umbilical cord and the fact that he was a small baby), but I was worried nonetheless.

I found out that St. Joe's, the hospital where I was supposed to give birth, no longer accepted VBAC patients. So I would have to see a doctor who could deliver me at Tacoma General. Just when it seemed the doors were closing, we ran into someone who knew a great doctor, specializing in VBACs. So I switched doctors just a few weeks before my due date.

I really liked this doctor, but she was incredibly straight forward with me. She agreed that I was a good candidate for a VBAC, but she was more concerned with the scared look on my face. When she asked me if I was worried, I immediately answered yes. Isn't that normal, I thought? I remember her saying that it actually wasn't. That most of her VBAC patients were completely gung-ho, would die before having another C-section, and wouldn't change their mind for anything. That you almost had to feel that way to have a successful VBAC.

So I decided that night to have a second C-section. I was just too overwhelmed and didn't want to risk anything going wrong. It was three days before my due date when I was scheduled for a C-section on March 9, my actual due date. Talk about last minute!

I actually slept fairly well the night before, eating dinner at the Spaghetti Factory (we decided it was tradition). The best part was that it was snowing when we woke up! When does it EVER snow in March? Seriously! It was so beautiful. Adam thought ahead to bring some movies, so we cuddled on my little hospital bed and watched a movie together while we waited for my scheduled time.

I was determined to have a positive, excited attitude about giving birth to my new baby instead of focusing on the surgery. I gave an optimistic smile to everyone who came in to help me get IV's started, etc. I was a caught a little off-guard when they wouldn't let Adam come in for my spinal. However, I tried to be brave and was very grateful to the anesthesiologist for giving me the spinal as quickly and painlessly as possible. I remember the team saying, "Wow, you and the woman having the C-section before you were as opposite as can be in this situation." I couldn't help but wonder what that woman was like...

Everything went well and I got to see and admire Gavin for a much longer time than Jacob. The difference between an emergency and scheduled C-section is huge. There's not this rushed, stressed-out look on everyone's face and your baby is not whisked away immediately after birth. Gavin was an absolutely beautiful and healthy baby... and we couldn't be more excited to welcome him into our family.

A misunderstanding

Adam and I went out for the night, so our neighbor came over to babysit. She does really well with our boys and they are always sleeping soundly when we come home. The funniest thing was when I went upstairs to check on them.

At first, I just looked at Jacob gently tucked under the covers. Then I did a double-take... what a second, is he naked?!? I soon discovered that he wasn't naked, just lying there in his underwear. The pajamas I left out for him were still neatly folded on his bed. I was totally, completely puzzled as to why they weren't on him.

Then Adam reminded me of the conversation I had with Sara before we left. I was telling her that he sleeps in his underwear now. (Last time, he had pull-up on underneath his pajamas.) So I had meant that he sleeps in his underwear, not a diaper. I didn't mean ONLY in his underwear. I wonder what he said when she put him to bed that way!! Once we figured out what happened, we were laughing hysterically on his bed. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time!

Sunday, March 09, 2008

Happy Birthday Gavin!


Gavin turned 2 today so we got to have his party on his actual birthday! It couldn't have been a more beautiful day. Beautiful outside, but even more so, a day filled with joy and laughter... one I will always remember with a heartfelt smile.

It was a close toss-up between Diego and Elmo for the theme of his party, but we decided to go with Elmo. Gavin kept saying, "La, la, la... la, la, la... Elmo earld." He also LOVES balloons, so we had to start it out with a huge bunch for his special day.

A few days ago, the weather forecast said that it was going to rain. I was so glad to see that it was a nice day from the moment I got up this morning. Actually fairly warm too, so we spent most of our time in the backyard. There's just something about the happy spirit of little kids playing outside. Especially because it's been about six months since they've gotten to play in the backyard. ;)



They were having such a good time, so we brought the cake outside to them and had a little picnic on a blanket.




Next, we came inside and opened presents while Daddy and his friends hid Easter eggs outside. (I thought it would be fun to have an early Easter egg hunt, since Gavin's birthday is so close to Easter this year) Then the kids got to take home their Easter basket as a treat bag.




All in all, I was so glad to share this special day with close friends and family. It truly meant the world to me to watch Gavin light up in excitement that it was his very own birthday.