Rainy Monday

How did you spend your rainy day?

On the couch watching TV and eating snacks in your PJ's all day?

Hanging out in your swing with your new pal Eeyore holding your paci in for you while you drifted in and out of sleep?

That is how we spent our day...

Daddy!

Happy Birthday to my fab hubby! He turned 31 today! As far as birthdays go, today was pretty boring. While he was at church this morning, I ran Reese and Sam to the store to buy a cake mix and a Starbucks gift card. Reese decided Lance would want brownies instead so we made those before he got home. This afternoon we went to the park and then out to eat. Like I said, pretty boring but I haven't had much time to plan anything. I didn't even get him a gift!! However, he is wanting an iPhone and hoping to get one soon so (hopefully) that will pass as a birthday present! ;-)

Happy Birthday Lance/Daddy!! We love you so much!

Game Day

Today is game day! GA v. GT. Our little munchkins are/were decked out in the Tech gear. Sam's outfit was a little improvised because his Tech clothes are all still way too big for the little guy! Luckily we had a yellow/white striped newborn onesie that I stuck a white long sleeve onesie under and some newborn navy pants. Lance, of course, had his yellow on today. But, me? I wore black. Gotta stay true even though I am in a house full of Yellow Jackets.

Sam looks terrified here but Reese is ecstatic because we finally let her hold him again after getting over her cold.


Reese gets confused sometimes and will say, "Go Tech! Sic 'em! Woof, woof, woof!!" LOL!!

Decorating for Christmas

We have started the Christmas decorating process...very slowly! Hopefully we can finish all the decorating tomorrow.

Reese putting her first ornament on the tree...

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving! I have so many things to be thankful for!! I am mostly grateful for the wonderful blessings God has given an undeserving me!

*Two kids who love each other (at least Reese loves Sam....he doesn't seem to mind her)!


*The entertainment that is brought in to our lives. We were watching the Thanksgiving Day parade and Jane Krakowski was singing so Reese grabbed her microphone and started singing with her. Later she used her chalk as lipstick and had pink smeared across her lips. I just love hearing her giggle. She was playing hide-and-seek with my sister while I was upstairs this morning and was having a blast. Every time I heard her giggle I couldn't help but laugh with her! I love it!

*A husband who is so thoughtful, caring, and loving with me and our children! He was such a big help the two weeks he took off to be home with us and I am so grateful!

*Family who is caring, loving, and supportive no matter what! We are so blessed to have their support in good and bad times!

*A healthy new addition to make my little family perfect! I can't believe our little man has been with us for two and half weeks now. He is such a blessing in our lives and is going to fit right in! He is so loved and cherished by us all.

We had a great day with my family today. I am so very thankful and honored to have them in my life.

Today also happened to be Leah's birthday! Happy Birthday, Leah! We love you!!

What a day...

Yesterday Sam started having a yucky cough like Reese has had for the past week. I called the doctor this morning and they said to go ahead and bring him in just to be safe. The doctor listened to his lungs and said they sounded good but just wanted to make sure. They did an RSV test which came back negative and then sent us over to Children's Immediate Care nearby for a chest x-ray to make sure there was no pneumonia in his lungs. First of all, I will never, never, never take my kids back there. What a gross place...sick kids everywhere and the upkeep just seemed forgotten. I promised Reese Chick-fil-A for lunch if she would just sit in my lap and not touch anything. The x-rays came back clear and it looks like little Sam just has a cold and it is staying in his nose. It sounds worse than it is. I guess that is the price you pay for having a baby in cold/flu season with an older sister. Right now I have two friends from college whose babies are in the NICU and am praying for a full recovery for both babies! I can't even imagine the stress and worry with having a really sick baby! I am so grateful to have a healthy boy!

Preview

Here are two of the pictures from our session yesterday...

Sweet Family

Sam had his second doctor's appointment yesterday. He weighed 8 lbs, 3 oz and is still in the 30's. He was back to 21" long (70's) and his head is now 14" round (20's). I seriously don't know how they determine the percentages. Reese was in the 90's early on so it is so weird to us to have such a "small" baby. He is perfect though. Thursday night he was very congested so I was glad to go to the doctor on Friday. He said the congestion is only in Sam's nose and not in his lungs! I woke up almost every hour Thursday night trying to suck the snot out of his nose to help him breath! Lance was super Dad and went to Kroger at midnight to get some saline drops to help clear him out! We are trying so hard to keep Reese away from him until her cold clears up but it is so hard. She wants to touch him and everything that is his all the time!

Friday night we ventured out to the park. Reese got to play for a little while and then we did a short (very short) walk. I am slowly feeling better everyday so it was nice to be able to get a short walk in. I can't wait to be back out there pushing my two little monkeys around. After the park, we had our second night of pizza and a movie. We have decided to start this weekly tradition with Reese to give her some special time. She loves it and always asks, "You wanna snuggle and watch a movie?"

Today we went to Piedmont Park and had family pictures made by the same lady that did Reese's fall pictures. My parents and Becca met us there to help entertain Reese and get her to smile..and of course a lollipop was promised for good behavior! After we were done Reese got to play on the playground while Sam got to eat.

Me and Sam enjoying the beautiful day...he is in there somewhere.


After playing I got some fabulous snuggle time with Reese.


While Aunt Becky got some snuggle time with Sam.

After the park, some friends of ours from small group brought dinner over to us. They stayed to eat and visit with us. It was so wonderful and much appreciated.

Tonight Sam got his first real bath. I have only been wiping him down with a wet wash cloth but now that his belly button and circumcision have healed he was ready for a bath. Reese was helping out like such a great big sister.

Sam obviously was not excited about this new and crazy idea!

Each night after bath time, we snuggle on Reese's bed to read some stories and say her prayers. She loves this time and I think it is so sweet that she loves to have her brother with her during the last few minutes of the day.

Thank you God for such a sweet family!

Daddy's Fun!

Pure enjoyment...

Attention

Reese is needing a little more attention these days. I know this is normal...especially for a kid her age. She is so used to having Mommy and Daddy's attention all to herself. She has been acting out a bit and not wanting to follow directions. Like I said, I know this is normal and we will get through it! She is still just as sweet and wants to know where "Baby Sam" is at all times.

We are trying to be diligent about giving Reese some special time with us. Today Lance took her to the Aquarium for some one on one time. I so wish I could have gone with them but I know she enjoyed her time with Daddy and I enjoyed some quiet time with Sam.



Tuesday after school I took Reese to McDonald's for lunch and play. She has had a lot of time with Daddy but not much time with Mommy! And then today we baked brownies together. Lately she has wanted to help me cook so this was a great way to spend some time with her.



She loves to lick the spoon when we are done!

I pray that Lance and I will be patient with Reese while she adjusts to this new change in her life!! It is so hard but we will make it...we aren't the first people in the world to have a second child!

My View

This is my view...



I would hate to turn the camera around and see his view!!

A Long Night

After almost a year of gymnastics, Lance finally got to go with Reese to class last Friday. He loved seeing her in her gymnastics class and now being able to understand a lot of the things Reese tells him about. He was also able to take some pictures of the day.

He got to see her jumping on the trampoline which is her favorite thing to do!


And then he saw that some times she just wants to do her own thing...

Her favorite thing about the foam pit is building with the blocks and then knocking them all in. Here she is telling the other little girl to stay back from her wall...she is already working those big sister skills.

She loves gymnastics!

And Sam loves sleeping! He is a sleeping machine during the day. But at night he likes to stay awake. I want so much to keep him awake more during the day but when he looks this peaceful it is hard to do.

My special time with Reese right now is a little edited. This night we sat in the chair together and ate a bowl of ice cream. She was so excited!

Holding Sam is one of her favorite things to do!

Saturday Sam experienced his first taste of fall football. He wasn't sure what to think so he slept through most of it.

Kisses, kisses, and more kisses.

We had a rough night last night. Saturday evening Reese had a slight fever so we gave her some Tylenol and sent her to bed. She woke up Sunday morning with a fever again but was acting fine. I thought it might just be her last molar coming in. Well, Sunday she missed her nap and played hard all day because my family was here. By 5:00 or so she was so run down. I thought for sure she was going to fall asleep but the Tylenol we had given her a bit earlier kicked in and she made it through the rest of the evening. Around 3:30 in the morning she woke up crying so Lance went in to get her. Sam wasn't sleeping, of course, so I was taking care of him...all the while not feeling well myself due to lack of sleep. I don't think Reese went back to sleep until 5:00 this morning and Sam finally fell asleep around the same time. We all slept in until about 8:45 and then called the doctor to get Reese in to see them. They said she has a slight upper respiratory viral infection and all we can do is let it run its course. So far today she has not had a fever and has been acting great. She didn't take a great nap but Lance made her stay in her bed for a full two hours just to get her rest. Now they are playing at the park while Sam sleeps and I give you an update! The doctor also said he wasn't worried about the baby getting sick since he is nursing. He just said to make sure Reese doesn't touch him...we let her give him kisses on the head...so now he has crusty snot in his hair. Yum! She just can't stay away from him. Hopefully tonight we will all get some better sleep. I think I will try to wake Sam up soon and get him to stay awake more this evening!!

I am so glad to have Lance home with me for one more week. He has been such a huge help! He is playing Mr. Mom very well. I know he is worn out and beat down. Reese alone is a 24 hour a day job! Being back at work will be some great rest for him! I am sure he is looking forward to that. I, however, am not excited about him going back to work. I could keep him here for a couple more weeks!!

Our LITTLE Man

Sam had his first doctor's appointment yesterday morning. He weighed 7 lbs, 8 oz and they measured him at 20.5 inches (we will stick with the 21" the hospital measured...no need to take anything away from him). His head measured 13 3/4". His percentages were so tiny. He is in the 70's for height and in the 30's for weight!! We can't believe how small he is. I need to go out and buy him more newborn clothes. With Reese she was in the 90's from the beginning and didn't wear newborn for long so we didn't see the need to buy that size for Sam.

We totally forgot how much newborns sleep. The little man is asleep all the time. It has definitely helped us get aquainted to having two kids. Reese is doing very well with the changes. She is so helpful and loving. We are excited to see how they grow together!

And then there were four...

It has been busy here the last two days. Having two kids is definitely different than having one but we are all so in love! Baby Sam has been doing a lot of sleeping and Mommy is trying to get some rest...key word: trying. The only thing in Reese's world that is different is that Baby Sam is at home with us now. Other than that, she still wants to play and is on the go 24/7.

So here is the run down of how things went. Sunday we hung around the house waiting on the hospital to call and let us know when to check in. I had talked to a friend who was induced and they called her around 6:30 and had her check in at 9:00. So that is what I was expecting. However, they called around 3:30 and asked us to check in at 5:00. Luckily, Aunt Becky got to our house right after I hung up and we were able to get Reese settled in with her and give her the run down of some things.

We grabbed the chance to take one last family of three picture before we left.


Right after we checked in to the hospital they got things started. The plan didn't go exactly as they had planned but it all worked out in the end. Monday was the longest day ever. We thought for sure we would have Baby Sam with us by Monday afternoon but he decided to hold out on us until 8:00 PM. The whole process went VERY slow but once he decided he was ready there was no holding back.

Tuesday Becca brought Reese up to the hospital to visit after school. We couldn't wait to see her! And she was so excited to be there. She immediately wanted to see Sam and loved him from the start. She brought him a present and he had several presents there for her to open too!


By Wednesday morning we were so ready to get home. The only thing we were waiting on was my doctor to get there and release me. Around lunch time the nurse called the office and asked him to hurry up. She knew we were anxious! He got there shortly after the phone call and sent us on our way.

The drive home seemed so long too. We finally got home and Reese couldn't wait to see us all...

And she was SO excited to show us the sign that her and Aunt Becky made. It was so sweet.

We got settled in nice and quick. Sam got his first ride in the swing. He seems to enjoy it as much as his Big Sister did. She has even asked to get in it too. She wants to do a lot of the same things he is doing. Especially having a pacifier. She has one that she carries around but so far has not tried to put it in her mouth!

She is always asking to hold him. She is such a great big sister and so helpful.

She has definitely asked for more snuggle time the last two days and we are happy to give out the snuggles! So far things are going smoothly.

We are so happy to be home and to be a family of four. All of us were laying on our bed tonight and my heart felt so full. We are so blessed!

He's Here!!

Samuel Dane

November 9, 2009

8:00 pm

7 lbs, 13 oz

21" long


About an hour after I wrote my post last night, Little Sam decided he was ready to meet us. He didn't waste any time making his entrance in to the world. Mommy and baby are doing well. We are waiting for Reese to get here any minute to meet her baby brother!!

Just Hangin' Out

We checked in at 5:00 last night.

Pitocin started at 7:00 this morning.

Water broken at 2:00 pm.

Epidural started at 2:30 pm.

5:45 pm...still laying in bed...waiting for BC.

Longest...day...ever...

Nothing...and Everything

No baby today. I have had several contractions today but nothing consistent. I guess we will wait the little man out until we get the call from the hospital to come on in. I am definitely anxious to meet him, to see him, to know him, and to love him!!

We have had a fun and frivolous day today. Our day has consisted of eating breakfast at IHOP, going to Wal-Mart to fill our shoe box for Operation Christmas Child, buying a double stroller (finally), taking a nap, eating breakfast (for the second time in one day) for dinner, watching Tech barely win, and then going to Cold Stone Creamery for some yummy ice cream. After ice cream we gave Reese a bath and then had some wonderful snuggle time with her in our bed...I almost broke down and let her just sleep in our bed for the night but thought better of that. We talked, played, and figured out that there are only two more sleeps until Baby Cupcake comes. It was such a perfect way to end the day. I feel so blessed to have had such a wonderful day with my two favorite people in the world before we add the third.

D-Day

Tomorrow is little BC's due date. We will see what happens. I am thinking we will not see him until Monday.

Pink Pig

Today Reese, Liz, Kayleigh, Caroline and I got to enjoy a free ride on the Pink Pig. We all piled in one car and headed down to Lenox to enjoy the ride! I think the girls had a great time riding together. In this picture they are smiling but are focused on watching Tinkerbell.


The opening event started at 3:00 and we were right on time. We only waited in line about 15 minutes or so to see Priscilla. As we were leaving I heard one of the workers say that the line was about an hour wait! While in line they had music playing so the girls were dancing and they also had a table where they could color.

I have never been to ride the Pink Pig. And yes, I grew up in Atlanta. Can you believe it? If you happened to blink on the ride you might have actually missed everything. It was a quick ride but the girls loved it! Here we are getting ready to ride on the "Pig Train". Hey Liz, we all made it in to the picture! Here the five us are getting settled and ready to ride Priscilla. Reese smiling as usual...

After the quick ride they had a buffet set up for a quick snack. It was such a beautiful day so we sat outside and snacked.

We had such a fun time with our friends! I am so glad we had the chance to do this today!

Mean Mom!

Last night Reese and I were eating dinner. I made these BBQ biscuit things that are super yummy and easy to make. I served them with peas and corn. Nothing fancy or crazy. Reese has been giving us a hard time eating lately so we have been promising ice cream (a very small amount) or something else as a treat for eating dinner. I think it is a horrible idea to do this but she really wasn't eating anything healthy and this seems to be helping some. So last night I didn't say anything about ice cream and I was just letting her do her thing while I was eating dinner. She finally sat down at the table with me and said she wanted some ice cream. She ate all of her peas and corn and in between some of those bites she ate a couple bites of the biscuits. The first bite she said she didn't like...which is common. She kept it in her mouth for a long time and finally swallowed it. The second bite she said the same thing and shuddered. After eating all of her vegetables I said if you eat one more bite of the biscuit you can have some ice cream. She opened up, put the biscuit in her mouth, got the chills, gagged, and threw up all of her food. I felt so bad and like such a mean mom! I didn't make a big deal about it. Just cleaned her up and had her drink some water. I totally empathized with her. I am the same way with broccoli. When I was younger my mom (sorry to call you out) was trying to get me to eat broccoli with my dinner. Just the smell of it makes me gag but I tried. My dad said my faced turned green and I am pretty sure I ran to the bathroom. And I think they got the hint after than and I have received that hint loud and clear with Reese now. No more BBQ biscuits for her. And in case you were wondering...yes, I let her have her ice cream. I said if she ate one more bite she could have it...I never said anything about seeing it a second time.

Dairy Farm

This morning when Reese woke up I had a surprise for her! A couple of weeks ago she watched a Barney video that was about being on a farm. She couldn't stop talking about it! She wanted to see cows, horses, goats, etc. So I found a local Dairy Farm that does tours. So this morning when I told her what we were doing she almost jumped out of her bed running. She couldn't wait!!

We invited a bunch of friends and most of them were able to go with us! There were ten mommies and eleven kids. There were a bunch of day cares there today too since schools were closed for election day.


The first thing we saw were calves. We were in the back of the group so we didn't get to hear a whole lot about them or see the lady feed them with a bottle. No big deal though because none of our kids cared about that. They were all so brave and just walked right up to the calves and stuck their hands in to pet them. We tried to feed this little guy below but he wasn't interested.

Next we saw a cow being milked. She looked less than thrilled about being out there in front of everyone.

After a brief tour of the processing area we got to go on a hayride which is what Reese was really looking forward to. She was so excited even though you can't tell in this picture. Again, every time I try to take her picture she turns away.

What better place to wear her cowgirl boots than a farm??

While on our hayride we got to see a dog herd the cows over to our hayride. It was really neat to see!!

All of the cows came running up to our hayride and stopped right next to us. Each of these cows is pregnant...I am sure they loved having to run while being chased by a dog...I felt their pain!

After the hayride we fed these goats.

Reese wanted to see more animals and wasn't ready to go home but the tour was over. We got a bottle of chocolate milk at the end that was milked and processed right on that farm. Reese, of course, loved the milk! Throughout the tour she kept asking to go ride a horse. I guess that will have to be our next field trip!! We had so much fun today. Even though most of the stuff went right over the kids heads I think they at least enjoyed seeing the cows!!