Thanks Mom!!!

Moms (and grandmas) are fantastic. My mom especially. I am incredibly grateful to her for coming to stay with us and for extending her stay since Tave was late. Between her and Jeff I was WELL taken care of! They were both so amazing and wonderful. Jeff will get an awesome post later...for now this is for my mom. :)
She left on Sunday and I was so sad. Those first few days without someone there to help are always a little bit scary. Today is going great, so far, so apparently I am managing. I hate to see what happens, though, when the kiddos realize I am outnumbered. haha.

Here are a few of the reasons why I love her and just to show you all how awesome she is:

• She came to stay with us for 17 whole days!
• She cooked meals
  
• Cleaned my bathrooms...thank you thank you thank you
• Helped me keep the house in decent shape
• Woke up with Weston in the morning so we could sleep in a little bit longer
• Took Weston on jogs, walks, and out to play
• Watched the boys for us so we could go on a quick date
• Constantly had whichever boy I wasn't dealing with at the moment
• Offered to take Tave in the middle of the night...why I never took you up on it, I have NO idea...
  
• Played games, talked, hung out, and was just an awesome awesome awesome Mom & Grandma!

I know there are a million other things you helped us with that I can't think of at the moment, but just know that you were very very very appreciated and loved!!
We love and miss you lots Lots LOTS!!

Mom with all of her adorable grandkiddos!
Kapria, Syanne, Mom, Tave, Weston
What a cute bunch!

More of my Boys!!!

I am absolutely loving having two little boys. They are both just so sweet in their own little ways and so much fun. I love having a newborn again. It is easier this time simply because we know that this stage goes way too quickly. It makes it all the more special while we have it.
Tave is such a sweet baby. And Weston, well, he is as fun as ever. He really loves having the "beebee" around and always asks about him as soon as he wakes up in the morning. Weston loves holding Tave and always wants to give him the binkie when he cries.

Jeff and I feel so blessed to have two healthy, beautiful little boys. We are absolutely loving this special time in our family. Thanks to everyone for all of your phone calls, emails, comments, adn meals! We are so blessed in our friendships and families. We love you all so much!!!

Tave will often find a finger to suck on. So cute!

Okay, a big HUGE thank you goes out to everyone who gave us name suggestions. We really appreciated all of your help. Going through the ideas and talking about each of them was a fun part of this pregnancy...and every name we didn't use got us that much closer to what we DID name him!!! So thanks again & again. (and just for the record...we checked ALL of the suggestions just to make sure we came up with Tave's name on our own!)
We love you all!!!

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up??

Weston's A: Bug Hunter!

Weston has discovered bugs. Yup. I hate bugs. I really hate them when they are in my house. But oh wait, it gets worse. I especially hate them when my two year old picks them up, squishes them, then insists on carrying his bugs around. And then shows them to me. Yes, it's true.
I. HATE. Bugs.
Lucky for me, they are just large ants, SO FAR. And even Luckier for me: he gave the squished beetle to Jeff.
Sigh. What am I to do?

Just for me, Jeff sprayed bug killer all around the outside of our front door. I think it might break Weston's heart if he doesn't find an ant every morning....
I am such a mean mom.

Cousins

I love living by my sisters. It is always so fun (and definitely entertaining) when we get all of the kiddos together. It is fun to see each of their very different and fun personalities. We spent some time together while my mom was here and it was great. I love my adorable nieces so much! (and of course I love my two cute boys too!)

Syanne, Weston, Tave, & Kapria. This was the best shot we were able to get...

Shar had Kapria sitting down on the floor and then Weston joined her like this all on his own. Syanne didn't want to be left out so she joined in too. How cute!! I was on the wrong side of this pic, but it's adorable anyways!

And here they are looking so cute. Don't you love Syanne's adorable grin?!

No matter how much time has gone by in between visits, Syanne & West are always best little buds when they see each other. It is awesome to watch them together. They are so funny and just chase each other all over the place. We can't wait until Kapria and Tave can join in!!

Just to make you smile....

A few of my favorites from the week:
These brought a smile to my face...I hope they do the same for you!

Tave smiling in his sleep. I don't care what 'they' say...I don't think it's 'just gas'. I think he's having good dreams. So sweet!

We got Weston this cute little boy doll (thanks for finding it Shar) to take care of when I'm taking care of Tave. This was a sweet, rare moment when he was feeding it. Most of the time it's thrown on the floor...well, we tried. :)

Kapria was playing on the floor and Weston climbed behind her to give her hugs. Her hair kept getting in his face, so he decided to play with it. It was pretty hilarious. The picture below is the end result after Weston was done.

I just love seeing Jeff being such a good daddy. He loves to hold Tave, take Weston out to play, and just do whatever needs to be done. Thanks babe, I love you so much!

Weston in his cute new jeans. I just LOVE jeans on little boys. Doesn't he look so adorable?! Love them. Love them. Love them. Seriously...they are my new favorite outfit of his. I'm weird, I know.

One Week Old!

Our little baby at One Week Old! He is staying awake for longer periods of time and we just love to watch him!

It is so fun to see him and Weston together. Weston brought over all of his animals to show Tave! How cute! We sure love our boys!!!!

Tave Daniel: Birth Story

Since so many of you have been asking for this...I thought I would finally take the time to tell you! Here is Tave's birth story:

May 10th: Due date. No baby
May 11-12th: OVERdue. Still no baby.
May 13th: Still overdue...still no baby. Getting tired of being pregnant.

10 am: I had my weekly doctor's appointment. Dilated to a 2.5 still, 75% effaced. Decided (after saying over and over that I would NEVER get my membranes stripped again) to get my membranes stripped. I just wanted this little guy to get here. And I'll be honest-- it hurt. A lot. But...
11 am: contractions started. Not too heavy, not too painful. Just there and constant. I can deal with this.
Contractions continue through the entire day.
3 pm-ish: Jeff, Mom, Shar, the kiddos and I all go on a walk to the fabric store. (I love fabric stores. Someday I will actually make things out of all the fabric I buy...my mom is a fantastic quilter...someday I will be too) The fabric store is farther than I thought. I am VERY tired and having MORE contractions than before. They have steadily gotten, well, a little more UNcomfortable throughout the day. That's okay. I can still deal with this.
7 pm: American Idol is on. We eat dinner. I told this kiddo that I didn't want to miss American Idol. He cooperated. I got to see the whole show although I was very UNcomfortable and contractions are starting to hurt more.
8 pm: Put Weston to bed. Contractions hurt. Very much. Still dealing although not liking it very much. I try to read through them. Ha. That didn't work.
930 pm: Decide Jeff should take Weston to Shar & Trav's because this kiddo is probably coming tonight and we didn't want to have to bring him even later in the night. Good choice.
1130 pm: Don't want to deal with contractions anymore. I just want an epidural. Now.
12 am: Got to the hospital. Dilated to a 3, 75% effaced. What? Not anymore than THAT?! Must wait 1 hour while being monitered to see if they will admit me. They'll admit me if I made progress in the one hour. Yeah, contractions are NOT fun at this point and I don't want to wait one hour. So I have her check me in 1/2 hour. I LOVED my nurse. I was a 4...they'll admit me. And that means EPIDURAL, yay.
1 am: Oh wait, the epidural took FOREVER to get. I don't know why. But I wasn't happy until 1 am when I finally got it. Yay, life is good. I am now relaxed and things are great. Oh and I'm dilated to a 5.
230 am-ish: I tell the nurse I am feeling a LOT of pressure. A lot. She says. "hmm...I'll check you." Checks me. "Oh WOW, you're a 9...I better call the doctor right away!"
3 am: Doctor gets in. Shar gets in a few minutes later. I can push. 10 minutes of pushing and !!!!hurray hurray!!!! our beautiful little boy is here. (3:26 a.m.) No name, yet, though! :)

So, there you have it. He is healthy, beautiful, and perfect. I have an amazing amazing husband and mom who helped me through the entire thing. I am so glad they were right there with me, encouraging me and supporting me. (and that Shar was able to make it in time! That was close, haha.) Tave's birthday was awesome and I am just so grateful that it all turned out so wonderfully.

Introducing.... our newest addition!!!

After much deliberation, wondering, worrying, frustration, and fun (we will definitely laugh about this later!) he finally has a name! We are SO thrilled because we BOTH like this name and neither one of us feels like we had to 'give in' . :) So...here he is:

Our sweet little
Tave Daniel

Brand New:

With our wonderful doctor, Dr. Savage

Brothers: Jeff and I both had tears in our eyes when we Weston came to visit and meet his little bro. for the first time. It was the most amazing experience to have our little family together after what felt like THE longest night!!!
Weston was so sweet and just wanted to give kisses and hugs! I love our sweet boys.



All of our awesome VISITORS:

Jonathan. Tave is the first brand new baby he's held. It was so fun to see how cute Jonathan was with him!

My Mom. She is just amazing. I couldn't have made it through those rough hours before the epidural without my mom and Jeff. They were an awesome support team for me and I love them both so much. Thanks Mom for coming and helping us. We are so glad you're here.


Shar, Trav, & Kapria. They are just the best!! They (and my mom) watched West for us over the few days we were at the hospital. They have already done tons for us and we are so glad to live close by!!!


James & Amy!! When Amy said she hoped they could be there (they were on a cruise over my due date) I laughed and said that I better have him by the time they got back (on the 12th) Now I am SO glad that I didn't. It was awesome to see them at the hospital and know that they are some of Tave's very first visitors. Thanks for everything you guys!! We love you so much!




Chelsea, Rob, & Syanne. It was so fun to get to see them and cute cute Syanne at the hospital. We miss living right by each other... so it was a treat to get to see you guys here! Thank you!



Al, Greg, & EvieJane. We love you guys so much and appreciate all the love and support you give to us. Thanks for making our day more special by being part of it!

Going Home!!!


In the carseat. He looks kind of funny...we had to leave the hospital shirt on him because it covered his fingers and we hadn't filed his nails yet...he kept scratching himself. What a cutie though!

At Home:

He is getting plenty of sleep....we are not!

We sure love him!!!
Thank you to everyone for your love, support, phone calls, and emails!
We love you and would love to have visitors soon!!! Give us a call!

PHOTOS! of the Boy Who Needs a Name...and his new family

These are just teaser photos, since you can't really see him up close very well. It's all they took on my camera, though (while I was at home working, Mom & Weston went to the hospital to visit and took my camera with them so we could make you all happy with some photos).

Weston is tired of pictures (as you can see), but he really does love seeing the "beebee" as he calls him.

And doesn't Nic look FABULOUS?! (She'll probably edit or delete my posts later, but while I have free reign of they're blog, I'll say what I want. He he he.)

Jeff, Nic, baby & West are headed home TODAY (Thursday) instead of Friday. That means TWO important things:

1. I think they're picking his name for sure before they leave the hospital. Hooray! We can stop taking our anxiety pills because after 9 months + 3 days (past the 10th) + 2 days (that he's been here) we finally will know what to call this boy!

and

2. For those of you in the area who are just sitting around wondering "when do I get to make that yummy recipe for their dinner?" - WAIT no longer! They'll start needing something on Saturday. I'm making stuff a few nights, too, but I figured I'd fill in the empty days. This is my shameless plug, because I know how helpful those can be when you get them, and how hard it can be when you don't.

Love you all and can't wait for you to meet their newest boy!
-Shar

Our Baby Boy is Here!

This is Shar, posting for Nicole & Jeff, who are happily hanging at the hospital holding their newest baby boy!

Here are Baby's stats:
born Wednesday, May 14 - 3:26 am
7lbs 8oz - 20 inches

he has beautiful, soft, light brown hair,
those brand-new baby blue/gray eyes,
good-sized hands and feet,
and DIMPLES in his cheeks!

None of us can believe how different he looks from Weston as a baby.

And his name, you ask? Well, they're still deciding. If you come up with any sudden name ideas before Friday morning (when they leave the hosptial), CALL and tell them! They're determined to name him before they go home. We're all excited to hear...

Nicole was awesome and did a great job bringing this baby here. She is doing really well, and I think feeling lots better than the first time around. Though she's still really tired and needing some good recovery time (i.e., they would still love to have some dinners brought. I'm doing lasagna for Friday. :o)

West has already met his little brother, and loves to give him lots of hugs and kisses. We'll see if it continues when they go home. ha ha!

Sadly, no pictures yet. I forgot to take some on my camera, and Nicole & Jeff have theirs at the hospital. So I - or they - will post some pics VERY soon!

Due Date

This is what I looked like on baby's due date:

You will notice that he is on the wrong side of the belly still. But I am still smiling, maybe a little tiredly, but it's there. :)
Love you all

By the way...apparently the babystrology ticker doesn't know how to deal with overdue babies. So I'm assuming it's going to start climbing upward now? Weird....

39 1/2 weeks: Still No Baby

Just a quick update:

I am still pregnant. He doesn't look like he's coming today. I'm just hoping for the weekend at this point. However, I AM dilated to a 2.5 ish. So that is VERY exciting for me. :)
Thanks, everyone, for your emails and comments. You make a 9 month prego person feel very good.
Just so you know: we will be sending out an email to all of you to let you know when he gets here and to check out the blog. Unless he is super late, I probably won't be posting more until then. I'm just tired. That is all. :)

Love you all!

Happy Happy Birthday Trav!!!!

Trav,
We hope your special day is awesome and that this year is your best yet!! You definitely deserve it. You are such an incredible brother-in-law. We love that you always make us feel important and part of your life and that you take time to do things with us. We love how much energy and excitement you have for life and that you share some of that with us! And we LOVE how much we get to hang out and have fun together. You are an incredible father, husband, uncle, brother, artist, and person. We feel so lucky to have you in our family!

Happy Birthday!

Love,
Jeff & Nicole


DeAr UnKl ChAvs,

i LuV yOo. i am sO glAd I giT too liv by yoO. i reAlllly LiKe plAyInG wiTh yOo, spEciAllY wen yoO thRow me ArOunD. thAt iS sOoooo fUn. yOo maKe Me laff a LoT.
i LuV yoO soOO mucH. haPpY biRthDaY!!!

lUv,
wEsT

38 1/2 Weeks

A few more days!!

Well...we're almost there! We are getting more and more excited by the minute. We cannot wait to meet this little guy! The stats haven't changed much...but that doesn't mean a whole lot.
The Dr. said I could go into labor tonight and it should be faster than before. YAY!

Here they are:
Dilated to 1+
75% effaced

And I was thrilled, shocked, and very very happy to weigh 2 lbs LESS.
So go figure: the week I TRY to eat healthy I gain 2 lbs...the week I have lots of party food from all the celebrating I lose 2 lbs. I'll take it!
(in all fairness, I think being so busy AND the fact that I didn't wear my denim jacket contributed to this phenomenon. BUT at least I wasn't MORE!)

And baby is kicking/moving like CrAzY!!! He pokes his little foot/elbow/knee out ALL the time. and gets the hiccups often. LOVE him already!

Happy 2nd Birthday Syanne!!!

What a Party!

Our sweet little niece turned 2 on Monday! We celebrated while both my parents were in town for Trav's graduation. We had so much fun...Chels & Rob put on a great party! :)

Chelsea curled Syanne's hair and she looked SO darn adorable! LOVE HER!
Chelsea & Syanne...I couldn't get her to smile for my camera...but I got a really cute one on Chelsea's. She's a doll no matter what, though. :)

The three cute cousins: Syanne, Kapria, & Weston. It was so cute to see them play and interact together. Syanne was so sweet with Kapria and Weston is holding her hand. How precious! I love getting together with BOTH of my sisters! and their kiddos

Weston playing with Endo (the puppy) and Grandpa. My dad is such an awesome Grandpa, I love seeing him play with the kids.
Quick story...just to show you that Grandparents really get to have FUN with grandkids...
Weston kept asking for chocolate covered cinnamon bears. He had already had 2 and so I told him 'no more' and that we were all done. When we got to Shar and Trav's house he goes into a bedroom and all of a sudden comes running out with a huge grin on his face to show me his special treat: a cinnamon bear. And WHO was the guilty culprit??? My DAD of course! It was pretty hilarious and the rest of the weekend Weston definitely knew who he could get treats, soda sips, and ANYTHING from! I don't mind. That's what Grandparents are for, right?!
Love you Dad!

Syanne checking out her cool pinata. She was so excited!

Weston taking a swing. He was more interested in playing then in swinging. Oh well...

So sweet!!

Mom & Dad with their three grandkiddos. I love my parents and miss them so much! You are both just awesome grandparents...we miss you so much!
A few pics of Trav's Graduation coming SOON!!!!