A Day at the Park

This past Friday was a really beautiful spring day- sunny, warm, and breezy. Our friend, and housemate, Shirmy, organized a little outing to the park with some of our mutual friends, Riley and Soph, and me. It was so fun to not only see the kiddos playing and watching the ducks - but the girls seemed to be having an awful lot of fun too!

Our first stop was the merry-go-round. The girls never did recover from being dizzy... :)

I never will tire of his grin.

Bubble Boy

Nothing cuter than the hind view of a toddler.

Gleeful because Shirmy was pushing him really high!

Riley loves ducks. He says duck and likes to quack, so seeing the real thing just about did him in!

Sophia liked to chase the ducks, and they liked to high-tail it into the water! :)

Sophia knew just the spot for a group picture and led us to this swing.

The whole group: Karen, Soph, Eva, Jodi, Riley and Shirmy.

How Do I Know?

How do I know how to be a Mama?

You are looking at the reason!

Mommy, on this day, your birthday, be blessed with the knowledge that all I know (and Jeni would agree, I am sure!) of being a good Mama is because of you. Not convinced? Take a look... and know.

Carol Ann, they are your legacy, and they have the Mommies they have because of the Mommy we have!

I love you. Happy Birthday!

Holding Haddie

In recent days Riley has taken to loving holding Haddie. With the assistance, guidance and supervision of Mommy or Daddy, he will sit and sit and hold and pat and kiss. It is SO cute! If he's not done holding her yet, but one tries to take her away, he quickly holds on to her and basically says, nonverbally mind you, "Not yet Mommy! I'm not done!" Eventually he will be done and he'll sort of attempt to throw her off of his lap - hence the watchful supervision of Mommy or Daddy to catch Haddie when big brother has had enough! :) I captured this sweet event the other day...

I just love the tilt of Riley's head in this shot.

Too little to be sick

This past weekend Hadassah came down with what seemed like a common cold. By Monday evening Jamie and I felt like the cold might be moving down into her chest/lungs. She had developed a cough, sounded very hoarse when crying and was gagging/choking on all the mucus that she kept trying to work out. Her eyes and nose were both draining green too. So... off to see the doctor yesterday.

I really thought the doc would listen to her and send us home with a "it's just a cold, wait it out." But, nope! She sent us over to our local hospital to get some further testing. Haddie had to get her little nose swabbed 5 times to test for various viruses and whooping cough. She also got a chest x-ray to see if there was any pneumonia. Some of the results came back last night - no pneumonia, flu or RSV. We're still waiting on the whooping cough test and some other viral tests.

I had to take Haddie back to see her Ped today. She is really doing pretty good. Her eye and nose drainage has pretty much gone away. She still has a stuffy nose and a lot of mucous that she tries to work out - resulting in a lot of gagging/choking. She is still coughing and sneezing a lot. But, she is eating decently and sleeping well. We just can't leave her alone and she must remain upright so that she doesn't legitimately choke when coughing.

If her whooping cough test comes back positive she'll be treated with antibiotics. Otherwise, as long as she's not getting dehydrated and as long as her breathing is not compromised, we will just wait out whatever virus she has at home.

Thankful she's not sicker than she is, but it is hard to see your little 3 week old baby sick at all.

Today's doctor visit was long. Well, not the actual visit - just the waiting... Hadassah wasn't see until an hour past her scheduled appointment time. I got bored. I took pictures. Enjoy. :)

Transitions

These sweet little hands pictured above, one of a certain little man that resides in our home, and one of a little lady that is new to our nest... the sweet faced darling below...

These children of mine, they are my world. They are my job, my responsibility, my life work and my joy. I love them more than can be described. When I am not with them I miss them, I worry for their well-being and life is so much more dull. When they are with me I am more at peace, for I can see with my own eyes they are well, and life is anything but dull!

I have a lot of thoughts to share on how we are transitioning to having three children in our home now. I will try to get those written out later today. For now, I'm going to go try to have some fun with my kiddos.

The Blanket of Miracles

Have you ever heard of The Miracle Blanket?

I heard of this fabulous blanket sometime when Riley was a baby. But... I wasn't sold - so I didn't bite. Well, I decided that I definitely wanted to give it a try with Hadassah. I love it!

The Miracle Blanket is a special swaddling blanket for babies, ages newborn to 4 months old. If you've ever cared for a newborn you know that when they are put to nap or bed they often startle themselves awake with their natural jerk reflex. You might have noticed that the baby also seemed really happy when swaddled snuggly in a blanket - but what blanket is big enough to accomplish a good swaddle, and don't most babies figure a way to wriggle out anyways? That was our experience!

Well, this Miracle Blanket is expertly designed and so easy to use. Our babies all have struggled with pretty bad acid reflux/excessive spitting up/heartburn, etc... Hadassah is no exception. Being swaddled up nice and snug seems to calm her and her tummy right down!

Jamie's Mom was gracious enough to get this blanket for us for a baby gift, and we just got it yesterday! Haddie seems to really like being in it and I have found it very simple to use. I highly recommend giving it a try (it's really not a huge investment - only $30 full-price, but ours was on sale!) if you have a newborn, or are expecting one. I may make this my future go-to baby shower gift for all my friends!

Jamie, cheesing it up for the photo.

Looking like he's not aware that his picture is being taken... :) he is.

Snug as a bug...

... and sleeping so soundly!

*** I have not been compensated for this post and my MIL purchased our blanket for us. I just really love this product and wanted to share!***

Makes Me Smile

I tend to post happy stories, funny kid-isms and special pictures. But, the reality is, our life is not all happy, funny and special. Our days are filled with the effects of not enough sleep at night, grumpy children who have sin-natures and need consistent discipline and guidance throughout the day, piles of dirty laundry needing washed - or clean laundry waiting to be folded/put away, a house who always has some area needing cleaned, arguments over silly things, serious discussions over heavier matters, and that constant desire to be more organized, more put together - you know, that state of domestic bliss that seems to reside somewhere "over the rainbow." And yet, even amidst all of these not-so-perfect normalcies of life, there always resides a reason to smile - and those reasons to smile tend to come from the same three little ones that are also the main reasons for my stress... :)

So, I wanted to share a few reasons I'm smiling today ~

This little lady's piggies.

This field of springtime flowers that my dear first-born created for me this morning.

And this little man's smile!

Two Weeks Old!

Yesterday, at 11:09 am, Hadassah turned two weeks old! She is doing so great. She really is a relaxed, content and chill baby. At this point, she still really loves to sleep, and though I have to wake her once or twice in the night to nurse, she pretty much just goes right back to sleep. Her content personality and love for sleep has helped make the transition to three kiddos much easier and I feel, for the most part, sufficiently rested.

This past Friday I took Haddie in for her first, post-birth, pediatric visit. She is growing great and appears to be healthy over all! She has regained her birth weight (7lbs, 15oz) and some - weighing just over 8 lbs! She has also grown in length, almost a full inch - from 19.5 in. at birth to 20.4 in. at 12 days!

We're so thankful for our healthy little lady.

Soph-isms

First, for all who guessed at yesterday's challenge, Hadassah is the one on the top and Riley is the one on the bottom! I wish I had a picture like that of Sophia, because I have a feeling she'd fit right in to the "look-alikeness," but, after looking through her pictures, I don't believe we took a shot like this of her. Thanks for playing along!

***

I haven't recorded any funny sayings of Soph in awhile - not that she hasn't been saying funny things, I just haven't been good at remembering them lately! Well, today I've got some.

Sophia was looking through a box of baby clothes my sister gave us for Haddie to use. She pulls out a top and declares, "Hmmm... This could be nice for Haddie to wear to a funeral, you know, if she ever goes to one."

Sophia brings over an outfit asking me what it says. When I tell her it says "Daddy's Girl," she declares, "Oh, she'll have to wear that on Father's Day!"

:)

***

Last night Sophia was in the bathroom brushing her teeth before bed. She was in there forever and talking away, and clearly doing more than brushing her teeth.

So, she finally emerges and I ask her what she was up to. "Oh, just decorating the counter." Images of toothpaste or lotion smeared all over my bathroom counter flashed through my mind. "So... what did you decorate with???" "Why don't you come and see?" "No, just tell me." "No, come and see." Okay...

She, very proudly, showed me how she had folded some washcloths and "decorated" the counter with them. After I took some pictures she wanted to take one of me with the counter.

Boy, was I relieved to find wash cloths and not some other means of "decorating!" :)

Look-A-Likes!

Can you guess which picture is Riley and which one is Hadassah???

Views from here

Sophia, always willing and ready to hold, hug, kiss, cuddle, or just "look out for" her little sister!

Playing on the computer - an almost daily treat that allows Mommy some time to get things done!

If that's not a relaxed baby, I don't know what is!

Bath time=fun time for Mommy to play with my hair!

The Story of Hadassah Anne

Two days prior to full labor setting in I was experiencing a lot of uncomfortable contractions. Early Sunday morning (March 28), around 3:30am, I awoke to more painful contractions and started timing. I quickly knew "this was it" and waited to get out of bed until the contractions were coming closer together. I think around 5ish, I got Jamie up and we ate some breakfast, took showers, finished packing our bags, made phone calls to our parents, my sister and our midwife. It was almost 6:30am when I placed the call to my midwife to let her know we'd be heading to the hospital soon. I was certain I was "far along" in the labor process because the contractions really hurt and I could no longer talk through them.

We woke the kids and loaded up the car and were on our way around 7am. The trip to the hospital takes about 40 minutes, and those contractions on the way, well, they weren't so fun, but, I got through them! My parents met us in the parking lot and we kissed Soph and Riley goodbye. That was hard. I always hate saying goodbye to my babies.

We got upstairs and settled into our room, etc... I was quite disappointed when the nurse who first checked my progress announced I was 3-4 cm dilated. She overheard me bemoan to Jamie about how I'd been 3 cm for the past 2 weeks and how could I not be more than that??? She quickly said, "Oh, definitely 4 cm!" :) Jamie and I did a lot of walking in the halls for a couple of hours. My midwife, Sue, arrived sometime after we did - not really sure what time. I think around 9ish she checked my progress and found me to be 5 cm and fully, or 100% effaced. She said I would finish dilating quickly at this point and that she expected Baby to be born before lunch! That was great news to me because I had told Jamie earlier I hoped Baby would come before noon.

The next two hours were pretty intense. I progressed very quickly, so the pain was, well, painful! I coped by walking the halls a bit more, and every time I contracted Jamie and Sue would put counter pressure on my lower back or hips and it made all the difference for getting through the contractions! There was an amazing, jetted tub set up for me to use right in my room, which I did get into for awhile. I was so close to the end though, it didn't prove relaxing and I got out pretty quickly.

Soon it was "go time!" I absolutely hate the pushing stage of labor/delivery, but eventually you just have to embrace the pain you're about to endure and use it to get the job done. Thankfully this stage didn't last all that long, maybe about 1/2 hour total. At one point I totally freaked out and said I couldn't do it, etc... I felt so helpless and scared. I remember having a moment like that with both Soph and Riley, so I wasn't surprised, but it was still an awful moment. Sue was fabulous and locking eyes with me and encouraging me and she totally got me through that moment. She was then needed to catch the baby, so she told Jamie to lock eyes with me and keep me focused. I just love my husband and he was the strength I needed at that time!

When Hadassah was born, at 11:09am, the cord was wrapped around both her neck and her leg. She had pooped in utero, which is a signal that at some point she was distressed. That was NO fun to realize and they did have to assist her a bit to get her crying and breathing good. There were a few tense moments, but she recovered quickly and was just fine! Praise the Lord!!!

Those after birth moments are so crazy. To meet this new little human for the first time and to realize that God has entrusted you to meet all of her needs and to care for her, etc... SO overwhelming. I loved her from the start and just couldn't get enough of her. One of my favorite moments after I have a baby is when I see Jamie hold him/her for the first time. He is truly my other half and to see his love pour out for his child is a spectacular sight. As he held Hadassah I was overcome with a new level of love for my husband.

We were all shocked at how "small" Haddie was. Before putting her on the scale we all guessed her weight, and I was closet with my guess of 8 lbs. She was just one ounce shy, weighing 7 lbs, 15 oz. She continues to seem so small to us, but we just adore our little peanut. :) (in case you don't know why we thought an 8 pounder was small... Sophia was 10 lbs and Riley was 9!)

Later that afternoon we were able to have my parents, Jamie's parents and Soph and Riley come for a visit. It was precious seeing Soph and Riley meet Haddie and of course was special seeing Haddie meet all of her grandparents for the first time. There was some major love happening in that room! :)

You might be wondering where we got Haddie's name. Her first name, Hadassah, was first inspired by a series of novels I read back in college. The main character, Hadassah, (from the Mark of the Lion series by Francine Rivers) is one of the most inspirational and amazing characters I've ever met upon reading a book. I fell in love with the name immediately. Secondly, the name Hadassah is in the Bible. Hadassah is the given-Hebrew name of a woman you might better recognize as Queen Esther! A couple years ago, when I mentioned this name to Jamie, he quickly fell in love with it too, and we'd been saving it for our dreamed-of next little girl. That dream is now a reality and we have an actual little girl to bestow this special name upon.

Anne, Hadassah's middle name, is in honor of both my Mom and Jamie's Mom. They both bear the middle name of Ann, so it seemed fitting! We love you Mom and Mom!

Thank you for reading Hadassah's birth story. It is one I will always treasure.