Brett Favre

As I was making my coffee this morning, I heard on Today that Brett Favre has been fined $50,000 for everything that happened with Jenn Sterger. Then they say that this $50K he's been fined is equal to missing 4 1/2 minutes of play. Are you kidding me?! I know he makes a ton but when it's stated that way, it really puts things into perspective. Ridiculous! It doesn't make much sense to me. Making incomprehensible amounts of money to throw a ball around and tackle people. Must be nice!

I spent a few hours at Kendra's house with Alyssa yesterday. It was fun to see Corbin and Noah play together. Noah and Corbin have totally different personalities. It was interesting to see them interact. Noah is a year older, maybe that has something to do with it? I was starting to get really mad when Noah started making fun of sweet little Corbin for not being able to beat him at Mario Kart though! Corbin kept wanting me to help him. Ha! He was better off without my help. Finally I took over completely and beat Noah. YES. It was close though and my competitive side kicked into full gear when he took the lead for a lap. :) Corbin wasn't too happy about his mommy holding Liam either. He wanted her to give Liam to Kendra. Alyssa said something like, "But mommy never gets to hold babies" and Corbin said, "But I'm your baby." (or something close to that). It broke my heart! It proved to me though that even at 3 years of age they don't really understand---and still need that one-on-one attention. Before going to Kendra's, I had lunch with my g'ma, aunts, mom, Kim and Sophie. Liam was asleep in his car seat most of the time but woke up at the end so I took him out. Sophie immediately went to Kim and her bottom lip came out. She got really sad. I said, "Are you sad Liam woke up?" Her answer: "Yeahhh..." in the saddest yet sweetest little voice I've ever heard. Maybe having an only child is the way to go! I can't even imagine how heart breaking it would be to see Liam act that way. I also can't imagine loving another baby as much as I love him. I know I would but still...how would that even be possible?! Someone on a baby forum I read said she's addicted to her baby. I think that's me. I can't get enough of him! I even find myself excited for him to wake up from naps now that I'm not totally exhausted. Every day is full of new things, new sounds, bigger smiles... He is simply amazing! Yesterday he discovered the toys hanging from his bouncy chair. Actually, he discovered that he can GRAB those toys that hang from his seat. I feel like I can literally see his brain working when he discovers these things. It's fascinating to watch. I am so, so, SO thankful I'm at home to witness all of this. If I had to go back to work, I'd be going back in two weeks. TWO WEEKS! I can't even imagine!

Alright, laundry time!

Wordless Wednesday....with words.

For one of my mom and dads Christmas presents, Kim and I decided to do a Sophie and Liam photo shoot. It was stressful and chaotic, this was the best picture that we could get. I think Sophie and Liam must've made a pact with each other to not smile! We captured what we wanted though, both of mom and dads little loves. Happy Wednesday!

Holiday hangover

I'm feeling a little let down after all of the holiday festivities. It came and went so fast...I feel like I didn't have enough time to savor everything! I ripped our tree down this morning, put everything Christmas away. Time to move on. I put everything away knowing that it will seem like just a couple of months and we'll be dragging it all out again!

This Christmas was by far the best I've ever had! Everything is so much more fun with Sophie and Liam around. Seeing Sophie's face light up over every little gift is priceless! Of course Liam could care less at this age but just having him here is the best gift ever. Even though he's only two months, he scored at Christmas! He's definetely loved by everyone!

....and now he's screaming. Will write more later!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Christmas Eve! Wow! I said this in an earlier post but I wish time could stop now that I have all of the shopping, wrapping and baking done so I could just really enjoy everything. The Christmas movies, music, lights. It comes and goes way too fast!

Below is a picture of our Christmas cards. Joanna took a picture of hers so I decided to do the same. I LOVE getting Christmas cards in the mail! Such a simple gesture that I think means so much to everyone. And nothing like getting 'real' mail in the mail. I've loved checking the mailbox everyday to see what we get. My favorite cards are those with pictures. Even though I see these people on a daily basis and know what they look like, including their kids, parents, cousins, pets (thanks, Facebook) it's still fun to see what pictures are picked for Christmas cards. To anyone who didn't receive a card from me, please forgive me. I ran out of the Christmas cards/birth announcements so I had more made and I ended up running out of those too. Then I simply didn't have the time and/or energy to make more. Next year....

Ok, off to make Upside Down Cranberry Cake from Smitten Kitchen. My sister made it a few weeks ago for a dinner after seeing Erin made it on her blog and it was delicious! And so festive looking. I'll be taking this to Tacoma tomorrow for our Christmas celebration up there. Busy weekend begins now! Merry Christmas!

Happy Birthday, Sweet Sophie!

Sophie is 2 today! What an amazing two years it's been with her in our lives. She has been such a wonderful addition to our family! She's so loving, so funny, so amazingly smart, so gorgeous! I love her SO much. Everyone does! She is one lucky little girl! My sister texted me yesterday saying "this time two years ago...." (we like to reminisce!). Anyway, it made me start thinking about that night too. We were having pizza at mailto:Pie@trio and there was a TON of snow outside. It was the huge snow storm of 2008. Then we stopped for ice cream at Baskin Robbins and that's when we got the call that Kim was in the hospital. I remember being so incredibly excited! Joe and I rushed home, grabbed stuff and took off on the long journey to Vancouver. I remember freaking out at Joe for going too fast on the freeway. The roads were so bad I thought for sure we'd end up crashing and miss everything. Thanks, Subaru, for getting us there safely! We stopped and grabbed George some fast food in Salmon Creek then went to the hospital. And waited. And waited. Forever. I have a picture of Joe and dad sleeping in the waiting room. At one point George's sister went to her car and got her sleeping bag and camped out! But finally things happened and Sophie was born. Such an exciting night though! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SOPHIE! Auntie and Uncle Koe love you so much!

Yesterday was Liam's two month check-up. Ready for this? He weighs a whopping 13lbs 14oz!! Apparently I'm making breastCREAM not milk. Hahahaha. His doctor said, "well, breastfeeding definitely agrees with him!" It makes me feel so good to know that every single ounce he's gained is a result of me. Nothing else! It's pretty amazing to think that my body allowed him to develop and grow for 9 months and is still continuing to do so. Unfortunately he also had to have his two month shots. It was horrible. I have never ever heard my baby scream like that. I thought for sure it ruined his sweet little personality! It was a painful, "I'm hurting" scream. So heartbreaking. He's pretty much back to his happy self this morning though. I've been dreading the shots but his pediatrician sat and talked with us for about 35 minutes and explained everything. I had so many questions and concerns and she addressed all of them. One of my biggest concerns was the 'vaccinations cause autism' argument. She doesn't think that's true at all. In fact, she said she has a patient who is one of the most autistic little boys she's ever seen and his parents didn't get him vaccinated. Anyway, after hearing her talk and explain everything she made me feel a lot better about it. She is awesome. Love her! She saw Liam night he was born, she was the on-call doctor, and she remembered us. She has since even gotten her hair cut short like mine. Haha!

Off to work out while Liam takes his morning nap....hope he stays asleep until I'm done and showered! Here's to hoping! :)

P.S. For some reason it wont space between paragraphs.........sorry!

Wordless Wednesday

Happy belated 2 months, Liam!

Weekend recap

Dancing at the wedding with my baby, our first dance together!

It was a busy but FUN weekend! We had a wedding in Tacoma on Saturday night. We were worried about taking Liam, it was a full Catholic Mass that started at 3 and then reception immediately after but he did great! The wedding was beautiful and you could definitely feel the love between the couple. The bride was SO excited...you could hear it in her voice, see it in her step...I loved it! I remember feeling that way, it's the best feeling in the world. You really feel like you're on a high, I felt the same way after Liam was born. The best days of my life!

Yesterday was Sophie's birthday party. It was a blast! It's amazing the difference between this years party and last years. She has changed so much! Her favorite gift seemed to be the tea set. All the kids loved it actually! Kind of a bummer though because that's one of the things we got her for Christmas. I guess that's one of thebad thing about having a birthday so close to Christmas. Oh well, next year we'll just have to wait until after her party and then go Christmas shopping for her.

Liam is also TWO MONTHS old today! I took a ton of pictures this morning with his "2 month" stickers on his onesie, I'll post them when I have more time. He is changing so fast! He wakes up smiling and stays happy all day. He pretty much only cries if he's has a poopy diaper, is hungry or wants to snuggle. I don't know how we got so lucky! He is such a great baby...I love him SO much! He has a onesie that says, "Mommy's best friend"....it's so true!

Hope everyone has a great week. And if I don't get a chance to blog before Saturday, Merry Christmas!

Ho HO Ho!

Hey look, it's Santa and Mrs. Claus! Aili and I tried to do a photo shoot of our little cuties but it didn't go very well. All Shailia wanted to do was sleep and all Liam wanted to do was scream. This is one of the best pictures I got. So funny! Shailia is 3 days younger than Liam.

I have to keep reminding myself that today is Thursday and not Monday! Joe was off Tuesday and yesterday so today feels like a Monday. Thankfully we still have a weekend left before Christmas. I have pretty much all of my shopping done, I just want a few days to enjoy the holidays. Looking at the tree, baking cookies...it never seems to go as planned though. Everything is always so rushed, so hectic. Even more so this year with a baby!

Yesterday the three of us went to Portland. Joe and I decided to splurge and buy ourselves a camera for Christmas. We've been using a point and shoot and we miss all of the good pictures because it's so slow. Liam will be smiling but by the time I get a picture he's on to the next thing. We decided to buy a Nikon D3100 DSLR. It is AMAZING. We are so excited about it! It also has HD video so we can get fun videos of Liam as well. Merry Christmas to us! :) We should've decided that was our Christmas present before we bought each other gifts though. Oh well...

This weekend is going to be hectic. Really hectic. Joe has to work until 8pm on Friday then on Saturday morning we have to drive up to Tacoma for a college friends wedding in the afternoon. The wedding is at 3 with reception, dinner and dancing, afterwards. Then on Sunday we need to leave early to get back home for Sophie's birthday. I know everything will be fine...it's just harder than it used to be. So much more to pack, so much more planning involved. I'm most excited for Sophie's birthday on Sunday. I really can't believe she's going to be two! She is the smartest and most amazing thing ever...we love her so much, can't wait to watch her open all of her presents. She definetely knows and understands that it's her birthday. So cute!

Ok, better go get some cleaning done while Liam is still sleeping. Who am I kidding though? As soon as I start cleaning he decides he needs to wake up. Which is why our house looks like a tornado hit! Oh well...there will always be a house to clean but not always a baby wanting mommy, right?! If anyone is bored and wants to clean...you know where to come!

Friday!

SO glad it's Friday. That's right, even though I'm not exactly living for the weekends anymore, I do live for when Joe isn't working night shift. It's definitely given me a taste of what being a single mom would be like. One word: horrible! He goes to bed as soon as he gets home at 8am and wakes up around 4:30-5ish. So basically I only see him about 2 hours everyday. Lucky for me he only works a few night shifts every month. I shouldn't complain considering how many people don't have jobs right now...it's just tough sometimes.

Liam is starting to sleep better and better! I have been writing down everything as far as his sleep schedule goes because I wake up and can't seem to remember and for the last few nights he has had the same schedule. We take a bath at 7, baby massage with "helps baby sleep better" lotion, pj's, nurse and then rock to sleep. Last night he wasn't wanting to sleep and I had to nurse him again at 8:30. He was asleep by 9:30 and slept until 1:40. It's getting harder and harder for him to wake up for that feeding though. He barley opened his eyes and was back asleep by 2:10ish. Slept again until 5. Still not great (compared to what other 7 weeks I've read about are doing) but hey, I'll take it. Anything beats having to get up every 2 hours! This morning after nursing he fell asleep at 5:30 and has been sleeping ever since. I used that time to exercise, shower, drink coffee and waste time doing this...even though I should be folding laundry, emptying dish washer... :) I deserve some 'me' time though, right?!

Ok, gotta get in my second cup of coffee before he wakes up! Happy Friday!

I love my Bumbo!

We've started putting Liam in his Bumbo seat for a few minutes everyday and he LOVES it. Gets to see the world from a totally new perspective!

Our first real smile caught on camera!

Watchin' TV with Daddy

Perfectly content until I sit down...think he knows who I am. Turn head, open mouth!

Sweet, sweet Liam

This picture makes him look huge! He really doesn't look that big in real life!

I can't believe Liam is going to be 7 weeks on Wednesday! I'm worried I'm not savoring every moment enough, sad that we might not be taking as many pictures as we should and stressed that I haven't been keeping up with his baby book and writing (really writing in a journal, not blogging) like I told myself I was going to do. I find myself not even knowing what day it is! Looking at the calendar and realizing Christmas is so soon is mind boggling. How can it be? I really need to learn to not dwell on things I haven't done and just enjoy the 'now.' Last Friday we went and met Liam's newest little friend, Baby Gavin. Seeing Gavin made me realize how fast and how much Liam has changed. Liam looked like a big kid compared to Gavin (he's two weeks today). It's so bittersweet! I love the stage we're at now, I don't think I'd want to go back to those first few days, but why do they have to change so fast?! The other night I was rocking him to sleep and we were listening to his lullabies on my iPod but after they were over, "My Wish" by Rascal Flatts, the song that Joe and his mom danced to at our wedding, came on. I got the biggest lump in my throat. Every word of it is exactly what I wish for Liam. If you don't know the song, Google the lyrics. I don't like country but I dedicate this song to my baby!

Ok, enough with the sappy post. Someone needs a diaper change and breakfast.... :)

P.S. This post says Monday but it's actually Tuesday morning. I didn't get a chance to finish it yesterday. :)

Beach, Apple Cup......a day of firsts for Liam!

Dad texted me this picture of sunrise at the beach on Friday. Gorgeous! We took Liam to the beach house for the first time yesterday. It was an absolutely beautiful day. Not a cloud in the sky! It was a fun and relaxing day. Watched the Civil War, dad and Joe played Wii when they got bored of the game, mom cuddled with Liam a lot and I just enjoyed relaxing and having a change of scenery! Mom and I also went for a walk on the beach. It was too cold to take Liam out, he stayed home with the guys. When the game was over we went and met my cousin and his girlfriend who came to go clam digging. So much fun! My mom and I stayed in the car with Liam but it was so fun to drive on the beach, watch the sun start going down and watch everyone digging. Joe doesn't have a license but dad does so he got to dig. Got his limit in about 20 minutes or so. Joe had a blast being out there and has decided he's going to buy a license and clam gun today. :) After that we grabbed a bite to eat and headed back to the house to watch the Apple Cup. The Huskies probably should've won by a lot more. It was an exciting game to watch. At least I thought so, although I know nothing about football! I just enjoy watching it because it takes me right back to college. It seems like just yesterday I was one of the students in the stand cheering on the Cougs during the Apple Cup. And I always remember the Apple Cup we won---everyone charged the field but I was scared to jump down to the field so I nearly got trampled. Hahahaha!

The drive home was great, I was nervous about Liam crying but he slept the entire way. He was so out of it we were able to take him from his car seat and put him in bed without him even waking up. Makes mommy happy! Also makes me so, SO happy that he's sleeping longer stretches. And at night, when he's supposed to! Last night he slept from 7:30 till midnight. Fed him and he slept again until 5am. Hallelujah!

On the agenda today: Joe just said he'd like to go back to the beach! There's another clam tide tonight so he thinks it would be fun to go back down, clam dig and spend the night. He loves the beach just as much as my dad!

Happy Sunday!

Happy news!

Liam didn't wake up until 5am this morning! I went to bed at 8:30 (don't judge, I'm getting old!), Joe fed him again when he woke up at 12:30ish and he slept from then until 5. 5am! I woke when he started fussing thinking for sure it was 2 or 3. I really had to look at my phone a few times to make sure it was really 5. Hooray! He's sound asleep again in his swing. It's amazing how good 5am feels after a good night of sleep. I've already had my first cup of coffee, got a load of laundry done and now I even have time (and energy) to blog! Let's hope this trend continues. Now that Joe is off until Tuesday I at least know I'll be getting more sleep than usual. Thank goodness we started giving him a bottle when we did, it's been a lifesaver! I'm so glad I stuck with breast feeding and powered through the pain now that it's getting easier. I really understand why a lot of women stop or don't try it at all. It's a full time job! It would've been so much easier if Joe could've helped feed him during the night from the very beginning. And the pain! Oh my...it was really bad for me. I would honestly rather give birth once a week than to have to go through the pain I had again. But that's gone now and I enjoy feeding him. Even if it does seem like it's constant. It's so cool to know that the pudgy little legs he's starting to get are all because of me. The human body is amazing!

Yesterday was a great day! Joe was working so it was just Liam and I. We went shopping for a wedding gift, went to lunch with Kim, George and Sophie, walked part of the lake and then spent the afternoon with Kim and Sophie. I LOVE having my sister in town. It's so nice to be able to do spur of the moment things! I took Sophie on a walk in the mall so Kim could shop faster and she saw Santa! Santa started talking to her and the first thing she said was "toys, toys, toys." It was so cute! And then she started saying Ho Ho Ho to him. She wasn't afraid of him at first but when we walked back by him the second time she grabbed my leg and wouldn't let go. Her and Liam are going to have so much fun together in a couple of years. I can't wait!

Alright, better get another cup of coffee in me before Liam wakes up. Keep your fingers crossed for another sleep filled night!

Last day of November.....

Happy belated Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Wonderful food, a weekend full of family and friends and no stress of buying gifts. Perfect! We had Thanksgiving at my aunts house this year and the day after Joe, Liam and I went to Edgewood for our 'Fakesgiving' on Saturday with his family. It was our first weekend away with Liam and it went great. I was nervous, it's hard being in someone elses house with a baby crying at night, but he hardly even cried. And slept more at night than he ever has before. I really think he was growing through a growth spurt over the weekend. All he did was eat and sleep. I know that's pretty much all babies do at this age but it was definitely more sleep than usual. And he looks way bigger than he even did just last week. :/ He grew out of newborn diapers and clothes literally overnight. Everything is going too fast!

Alright, Liam is calling. I may not blog much anymore but I hope that eventually I'll have more time. And energy. :) Don't give up on me just yet!

Babies galore

Yesterday I had lunch with friends and their babies, Aiden and Shailia. Shailia was born two days after Liam and Aiden is three months old. It was so fun to see them all together and see how big Aiden looks compared to Liam and Shailia! Aiden is so fun. Smiling like crazy, making cute sounds...I can't wait until Liam starts doing stuff like that!

It's so nice having other moms to talk to who have gone through everything so recently. It's weird, but even people with 12 months old seem to not remember these first weeks, days and months. Must be natures way. If they remembered all of the sleepless nights and other not-so-fun stuff vividly we'd probably have a very small population! No one can tell you what it will really be like. You hear, "It's the most amazing thing in the world...you're going to love it!" a lot, but at 3 in the morning when you haven't slept more than 2 hours it's hard to think that. And then you feel guilty for not feeling like it's the most amazing thing! Last night was amazing though. I fed Liam at 7:30 and not again until 12:17 am. I woke up feeling refreshed, happy to change him, feed him, snuggle and rock him back to sleep. I know my feelings of being not so happy all happen when I don't get enough sleep and have to wake up 5 times a night! After the 12:17am feeding I didn't have to feed him again until 4. So nice. I switched our routine up a little last night. I gave him a bath using the "gauranteed to make baby sleep better" soap (right!). The evening is always his fussy time and I think the bath really helped relax him. I'll let ya know tomorrow. Tonight will probably be like Wednesday night again. But just knowing that every once in awhile I will get a few hours of sleep makes me feel better! Whoever said "nap when they nap during the day" must not have had any other responsibilities. I can't do it! And I'm never tired enough. My sister says 12 weeks is the big turnaround. I shouldn't complain, Liam is a great baby...but having those stretches of sleep last night make me excited for it to continue on a (somewhat) consistent basis!

Sweet baby is sleeping now. Better go chug my cup of coffee before he wakes up and wants to eat! Happy Friday, happy weekend!

Just wondering....

Will I really ever sleep again? For more than an hour at a time at night?

One month!

Our sweet baby Liam is one month old already! In some ways it seems like he's been with us a lot longer, in other ways it seems like he should still be just days old. It's been an amazing 4 weeks. I feel like every morning when we wake up he's changed. It's all happening so fast!

Happy 1 month, Liam. We love you soooo much!

Ahhhh....sleep

Sleep, a thing I thought I would never get for more than an hour at a time! Breastfeeding makes it hard to get help with middle-of-the-night feedings and was leaving me feeling totally exhausted. We wanted to try to introduce Liam to a bottle but were worried that he would prefer the bottle over me and I wouldn't be able to continue breastfeeding. Our lactation lady said not to even try until 6 weeks yet our pediatrician said we had better try now before losing the "window of opportunity." So confusing when we get conflicting theories like that! My mother-in-law invited me to go to "A Christmas Story" in Seattle the Sunday after Thanksgiving so that's when I knew we better try a bottle. Otherwise there'd be no way I could be gone longer than 2 1/2, 3 hours! We decided to go for it and try it on Monday and he took it like a champ. I pumped, left a bottle for Joe and went to bed to hide. Apparently a lot of babies wont take it even if mommy is in the same room! I went to bed at 9 and woke up at 2 because he was hungry. That's right, for the first time since October 19, I got 5 whole hours of sleep. It was glorious! And addicting. I've been pumping every night now so Joe can do the 9ish o'clock feeding and I can go get a good stretch of sleep. It's amazing how much better I feel when he wakes me up at 2. And 4. And in the morning! I'm wide awake and feel like I'm ready to take on the day. Yay for bottles and a baby who was willing to take it. Now I'll just hope I didn't jinx myself by writing about this!

My in-laws came and spent the day with us yesterday. It was a fun day! I'm glad they came down and we're excited to go on our first overnight trip with Liam when we go up for our "Un-Thanksgiving" weekend. We always celebrate Thanksgiving with my family on actual Thanksgiving and then go up and spend the weekend at their house and have a mini Thanksgiving on Saturday. Looking forward to it!


And now, a picture of Sophie and Liam. Sophie can't say Liam so she calls him "Lemme" or "Baby Chole." Chloe is one of my sisters friends newborn, born about 4 weeks before Liam. Sophie has play dates with Chloe's older sister a lot so Chloe is the first baby she's been around. So now Liam, or probably all babies, are Baby Chloe. :)

More Liam

Our sweet baby boy was three weeks old yesterday! I have to share more pictures taken by Joanna. So lucky to have all of these great shots! Joanna, I stole these from your gallery because I left the CD at my parents showing them off. :)

Joe's ER trip

Go figure, the first hospital bill we get is for Joe's 20 minute trip to the ER. It just doesn't seem right that they can charge us when he was so adamant about not going (they made him) and then receiving no treatment once he got there. The bill: $268. Nice. Bet they love it when dad's pass out and they can make some quick money! Grrrr. Makes me scared to get the bills for Liam and I. How do people that don't have insurance do it? Or is that why it's so expensive for those of us that do have insurance? They can't afford to pay so ours is more expensive. Makes you wonder...

We had a busy but great weekend! Our friends Nick and Kara came Saturday evening to meet Liam. It was great seeing them! And we always love it when people get to meet Mr. Liam. :) I was feeling brave Saturday and told Joe I wanted to go visit his parents and see his grandma and grandpa (they still hadn't met Liam) on Sunday. I was a little worried about the drive but we went for it and Liam did great, didn't make a peep the way up or on the way back. And he got to meet SO many people! It was a great day, totally unplanned but worked out great. We also got a 4 generation picture. Joe's grandpa, dad, Liam, Joe, Matt (Joe's brother) and Weston. Weston was born in August but is already so big and has changed so much since the last time we saw him. I can't believe our little baby will be changing so much and so fast....

We left our house at 7:30 yesterday morning (thanks, daylight savings!) and got home around 8. It was a long day but I think it wore Liam out because he only woke up twice last night. Good baby! Speaking of Liam, he is doing so good. I fall more and more in love with him everyday. He is such a blessing and the most amazing thing that's ever happened to me. I couldn't imagine what life would be like with him and now I can't imagine it any other way. I love him!

Lunch today with the girls at the place of my water breakage. Hahaha. I'll never be able to go to the Cow Deli again without reminiscing about that night!

In case I don't get a chance to blog again for awhile, have a great week!

Liam, 2 weeks old. My friends Alyssa and Joanna came out to our house and took pictures of him. He was awake the entire time (they wanted him to sleep) but I love, love seeing his precious eyes! I'm so thankful they captured so many great pictures!

As promised....

How Daddy stole the show! That's right, my husband, Mr. Not Afraid of Anything---loves anything gross and medical related, passed out after Liam was born. Everything was going great, Joe was down by the doctor watching everything, even telling me that he was almost out and was saying, "just a few more pushes, you're doing great!" Liam was born and in Dr. Saraf's hands and I look up at Joe in amazement and the next thing I know he's falling back like a domino. It happened so fast. At this point I thought there was something wrong with the baby. He made it through everything and then as soon as the baby is born he passes out? I was scared...thinking for sure something was terribly wrong with Liam and my husband was dying! I remember Dr. Saraf yelling, "What the....!!" as he went down. He took down a nurse with him and broke some stuff in the room. He woke right up though and was totally alert but the nurses refused to let him get up, almost sitting on him to keep him down. He kept saying he was fine and just wanted to see his baby but they had to follow "husband passes out during delivery" hospital protocol.

When a baby is born at St. John's a lullaby is played all throughout the hospital. Not for Liam! Instead it was, "Medics needed in 512, medics needed in 512!!" Everyone in the waiting room was freaking out not knowing what was going on. They made Joe go to the ER and told him it could take 2 hours! We hadn't even named Liam at this point and Joe hadn't even held him, let alone see him cleaned up. Before they took him away on the stretcher the nurses made sure to get some pictures saying, "this will be something you never forget!"

We were the talk of the hospital, everyone who saw Joe mentioned it and those not working were disappointed they missed out on the excitement. Luckily Joe took it with stride and wasn't embarrassed....he jokes about it too. Apparently he just saw too much after the baby was born. Needless to say, it will be a day never forgotten---can't wait to tell Mr. Liam about it someday! And so thankful the nurses stopped to take pictures!

Introducing Liam Vincent Sanderson

He's here, he's here! Liam Vincent Sanderson as born on 10.20.10 at 10:22pm and is the most amazing and best thing that's ever happened to us. I've always heard that you don't really know what love is until you have a child and that is so true. I never could have imagined how in love I would be with our sweet baby boy!

Last Wednesday was like any other day. I was up early with Joe before he went to work, cleaned house and had an NST (non-stress test) at 11am. The test showed that baby was still thriving and was fine to stay until our induction date on 10.26. In fact, I didn't have a single contraction the entire hour I was hooked up to the machine so I thought for sure he wouldn't be here until the 26th.

At around 5pm I started feeling a little different but wasn't in that much pain. I had plans to go for dinner with my parents since Joe was working until 7:45 so we went to the Cow Deli and that's when it all started. Suddenly my pain started getting worse. I powered through it but as I was about to start eating my soup my water broke at 6:15pm. Sorry for all of you Cow Deli lovers. I wont say which booth it happened in! I called Joe at work and told him and he headed right home. Mom drove me home, I jumped in the shower and at that point the pain was becoming unbearable...and contractions were about 6-7 minutes apart. We gathered all of our stuff and took off. At this point I was in so much pain I couldn't talk. We got to the hospital at around 7:10 and the nurse that checked us in said we were staying....and she was calling Dr. Saraf because she thought things were going to go fast.

Our nurse was right. Since I had cancer they had to do a bunch of blood work before giving me my epidural. Little did we know that I was almost totally dilated at this point, which is the reason I was in so much pain. They finally got the blood work back and gave the anesthesiologist the go ahead to give me my epidural. The nurse checked me again and was shocked but it was time for me to push. I didn't get to enjoy any of the benefits of the epi! I pushed for about 20 minutes and he was born. Only 3 hours after we arrived at the hospital! Everyone was shocked at how fast it happened and said our next baby will come even faster. Lucky me!

Life since last Wednesday has been wonderful. We've been totally blown away with all of the love and support we've gotten from friends and family. Meals delivered, gifts, flowers...it all means so much and we love introducing him to everyone! He is so loved already!

This is the first time I've actually sat down at the computer since the last time I blogged. Breastfeeding is a full time job for sure. When I'm not feeding him I'm either enjoying holding him, relaxing with Joe, visiting with visitors or getting stuff done around the house. I love our little family! And I've also loved having Joe off. He'll go back to work next Thursday after being off for two weeks. Joe has been SO amazing, he's an awesome dad---it melts my heart to see him interact with Liam!

Next post: how Daddy stole the show from Liam on the big day. Stay tuned!

Joe's last day!

Today is Joe's last day of work for....a long time! Tomorrow is the beginning of his long break off and whether the baby is here or not, he'll be taking all of next week and part of the following week off. YAY! I'm so excited he'll be here. Even though he could be home in 5 minutes, I feel anxious without him here. Today also marks two months since I quit work. TWO months! Wow! The Katy they hired to replace me isn't there anymore. Interesting...

We had our last doctor appointment at Dr. Saraf's office yesterday! Even though I'm still only still 1cm dilated, it was encouraging to know that by this time next week we'll have a sweet baby boy to hold. Finally! I have to have another NST (non-stress test) today. Our doctor is going out of town tomorrow until Monday, so it will probably happen sometime while he's gone. Such as life.

Happy Wednesday!

Delicious!

This morning I woke up to the wonderful smell of my husband making us breakfast. It was delicious! He's a big Alton Brown fan so he made Alton Brown's French Toast. Definitely a recipe to keep! And try!

It's a gorgeous day---we're off to walk the lake!

Today is a great day to have a baby!

But let's be real, it's not going to happen today. Every morning when Joe leaves for work he says, "Maybe I'll get a call saying it's time today." Maybe I'm totally wrong but I just don't think it's going to happen before the 26th. I wake up every morning feeling the same as usual. Or maybe I'm being really ignorant and it's going to happen when I least expect it. Like when we're walking the lake and are 2 miles from our car. Or when I'm on the freeway coming home from Portland or Vancouver. I've been on the go constantly just because I don't think it's going to happen! Perhaps I should get wise and get everything for the hospital in the car just in case? Might be a good idea...

Yesterday I had to go for a fetal non-stress test (NST) because I'm overdue. It measures fetal heart rate in response to it's own movements. They hooked me up and we had to wait and be monitored for 20 minutes. She came back in at the end of 20 minutes and he hadn't moved so she gave me a sucker. The sugar in the sucker woke him up almost instantly! It was so amazing. They were then able to get the readings they needed and everything looked great. According to the machine I had one small contraction while I was being monitored but I couldn't feel it, just a Braxton Hicks. It always amazes me when we're able to listen to his heartbeat. Truly a miracle!

Hope everyone has a great weekend...maybe next time I write it will be to post a picture of our sweet little boy!

It's official, Baby S is going to be evicted if he doesn't decide to come soon. We had a doctor appointment yesterday and he's made absolutely no progress since last weeks appointment. Nothing. At. All. I now understand why these last appointments can be discouraging. My official due date isn't until tomorrow but still...nothing, baby? The nurse said it's a sign he's going to be "very laid back like his parents." I was thinking more along the lines of stubborn...like his daddy, not me. ;) If he doesn't come by the the 25th, I'll be induced the morning of the 26th--at the end of my 42 week. I'm worried he's going to be huge, but doctor doesn't think so. Here's to hoping he's right about that!

No-name, just please think about coming on your own before the 26th! We are ready for you, your room is ready, you have a closet full of clothes, the house is freshly cleaned and I've run out of things to keep my mind off of waiting for your arrival! But with that said, please wait until after tomorrow night. Mommy really wants to go to the Cabaret!

A boring post

Tuesday already! And October 12? I'm sad how fast October is going, it's my favorite month of the year! Especially with weather like this!

We had another busy weekend. Joe was off on Friday so we decided to have (what we thought) our last date night. We took off for Portland, hit up REI for Joe and had dinner at 360 Pizzeria. We were going to go see "Life as We Know It" but we missed the 7:30 show and Joe didn't have faith that I would make it to (and through) the 9:30 show. He was right, I was exhausted by the time we got home! It was a great night but I'm thinking we'll have the opportunity for a few more date nights before baby comes.....

On Saturday I went to a baby shower for a friend who is due December 1. Our friend came up from San Francisco so after the shower the three of us went for dinner. It was great catching up!

Sunday was quite possibly the most boring day I've had in awhile. Joe had to work Sunday night so he slept as long as he could and then relaxed all day. Ended up going to see the movie Sunday night with sister, mom and aunt. Joe was happy he got out of it, he wasn't too thrilled about seeing it.

Yesterday I left the house at 8am, went to Vancouver, got home at 5:15 and then had a class reunion meeting at 6. Last night I was exhausted and looking forward to not having anything planned for today but I've been up since 5 and I'm roaring to go again. Good thing Joe is off today and will be ready to hang out with me after he comes home and takes a short nap!

Happy Tuesday!

A preview of what's to come?

Not sure how I found it, but this website is funny. Check it out. I especially like the post from October 4 and June 29. Subie better watch out!

Goodbye to the Subaru

Three years ago yesterday I traded in my Jeep and we drove home in a 2008 Subaru Legacy. The trade happened because I was sick of paying a ton of money for gas, insurance and big car payments. I bought my Jeep right after I graduated. I didn't think it would be any big deal to have a car payment...that's why I was working, right? That thinking didn't last long. I HATED it! Seeing what little amount of the payment was going towards the principal and how much towards interest was beyond depressing! The Subaru was a great idea (or so I thought). I decided to lease--thinking that I would want a new car every three years--and it was perfect because it was AWD, cheap payments, good gas mileage, etc. Well, that thinking didn't last long either. Soon after I realized how stupid (for me) leasing was. I was making rental car payments!

Solution: knowing our lease would be up October 5, we bought a 2002 Subaru in March, paid cash for it and are now officially done with car payments--forever I hope! I have no desire to ever make payments again! Ever. Funny how things change. Yesterday we had to return our 'rental' car. Very weird. We pulled up to Clary's, handed the keys and left. End of story. We had 5 miles to spare on our lease, every mile over costs $$, and pretty much coasted in. It was so low on gas instead of the dash saying "20 miles to empty" it just said "---- to empty." We planned it out well! :) It was kind of sad to drive away from it, but after cancelling insurance on it yesterday and finding out we'll now be paying $900 less per year made it a little easier.

Goodbye Subaru, hello new pre-loved-paid-for Subaru!

Beach trip

A perfect day at the beach! It was an overcast day in Longview but we got to the beach and it was sunny, gorgeous and warm. Mom and dad bought a house so of course we had to go check it out. It's going to be so much fun to have somewhere that all of us can go and stay. So many good memories to come. Here are some pictures of our day...

Nesting?

I think so! I woke up at 2:37 am yesterday and was up until I crashed on the couch at 9:30 last night. I think hearing our doctor say I'm dilated has caused me to nest even more. My goal yesterday was to make and freeze meals that we can have after the baby is born. I got quite a few done, here's what I made:

Turkey Taco Soup
Pesto Chicken Cannelloni
Chicken Rice Delight
Lasagna

It doesn't sound like as much when it's written out but I figure since I froze them in small dinner-sized dishes, it will get us at least 6 or 7 dinners. I have one more meal to make and then I'll be done. I'm also going to stock up on our favorite crock pot dinner ingredients so we can have everything ready to go.

Today = deep cleaning. Really need to clean behind the washer/dryer (I know it's going to be disgusting!), kitchen cabinets and drawers. Hopefully it's another productive day. My mom said yesterday she thinks the baby might be coming sooner than later since I've kicked nesting into high-gear but my goal is to keep him in until at least the 14th. Here's to hoping!

Happy Thursday!

Hello, hello!

Sorry for the lack of blog posts. Life has been....busy. Actually, blogging has just been the last thing I have wanted to do lately. And when I decide I will I get distracted and end up doing something else instead! Seriously though, the days are FLYING by and I can't even keep track of what day it is. I feel like I'm in a weird time warp. It's going slow--in terms of baby coming--yet so fast in every other way.

So what's new? I decided it would be fun to help plan my 10 year class reunion. We had our first meeting last night. Any readers want to donate money to the current ZERO dollars we have to plan the party?! There were only three of us girls who showed up at the meeting and I have a feeling we'll be the only three from here on out. Oh well, sometimes the less people involved, the easier planning something big is. Riiight? We'll keep telling ourselves that! Can't believe it's been 10 years already. Crazy!

In baby news, Joe and I attended a "breastfeeding and newborn care" class this morning. It was pretty informative but a lot of it will just require practice. Which is frustrating since we have nothing to practice with yet. Kinda gives me anxiety. I want everything to go as smoothly as possible, it's hard to realize I have no control over how it will go. I guess all I can do is be as educated as possible, ask for help if I'm struggling and learn to let things slide. We also had a doctor appointment this afternoon and guess what? I'm DILATED. Just a tiny bit, but still....he's starting to plan his trip out! And thankfully doctor said he's definitely head down. I so hope I can have him naturally---recovering from a c-section sounds miserable. So that's the big news of the day. When will it be? If only we knew! Another thing that we have absolutely no control over. All I know is we're going to the beach Friday and hopefully it doesn't happen then...might be a long drive back if I'm having contractions!

Tomorrow: babysit sweet Sophie and cook. My plan is to cook 4 or 5 meals and freeze them so we have some meals after we come home from the hospital. I'm sure grocery shopping and cooking wont sound like fun for awhile. It sounds exhausting now, so I can only imagine how it will be then!

Keep your fingers crossed for an easy and smooth arrival of Baby S. It could be anyday now!

37 weeks

It's almost time!

Lazy blogger

I'm lacking motivation to blog! Actually, I'm being lazy about uploading pictures and I didn't want to blog until I had pictures from my baby shower to post but I still can't get the motivation to do that. Pictures will come later! :)

My baby shower was perfect! My sister did such a wonderful job with everything and I had a great time. We got so many wonderful things---thanks to all of you who were there to make it so special! And a big thanks to Ashley for the diaper raffle idea. We got SO many diapers....months worth! Since the shower I've been so busy getting everything washed/organized and ready for baby. Nesting has definitely kicked in....I was up until after 1 Sunday night cleaning/washing/organizing.

I had my weekly appointment today and doctor estimates baby to be about 6 pounds right now, right on track with what he should be for my due date. He hasn't dropped though, so he's in no hurry to make an appearance.

Still have lots to do between now and the big day, can't believe how close we're getting!

36 weeks and 1 day

Since I took off so early yesterday, I forgot to take a belly pic. I really can't believe I only have 4 weeks till my due date. It just doesn't seem real! Will it ever?

TGIF!

It's been one busy week! Yesterday I drove up north to visit two of my college friends. I figured this is really the last week I should be venturing very far from home, especially by myself. I left at 7 and got home at around 9. I had a great time! But let me say, I HATE traffic. Oh. My. Gosh. How do you Seattle/big city people deal with it?! It was horrible. I don't know if it was because it was so rainy or if that's just always how it is. Not fun.

I'm waiting for Joe to get home from work right now. I didn't see him at all yesterday so I want to see him before I take off again this morning. Target is calling my name! He'll sleep until about 12 and then it's time for the weekend. Hooray!

Happy Friday!

Puyallup Fair 2010

The fair! It was fun! So nice to go during the week and avoid all the crowds and crazy people. Yesterday Kenny Rogers had a concert so it was kind of like senior citizen day. Hahaha. We picked up Joe's dad and he went with us since Joe's mom was working. I think he enjoyed hanging out with us---and him and Joe got to go on the Extreme Scream, my favorite ride. It was torture seeing them in line and not being able to go. Next year, next year....

On our drive up I couldn't decide if I wanted a scone, funnel cake, elephant ear or fudge. Or corn fritters. Or all of the above. Thankfully once we got there and started walking around and seeing all of the above, the only thing that sounded good was a scone. Don't think the baby (or I) needed much more than that. Those things always sound better than they taste anyway. At least that's what I'll keep telling myself! We bought two different types of honey after taste testing (Joe LOVES honey) and David bought us a new Cougar flag for our yard. That's one of the main reasons I like going to the fair every year---to replace the flag. Can't find the size I have anywhere but there!

After the fair we got to see baby Weston. He's a month already! Hard to believe. Then Jayne and David took all of us out to dinner at Mama Stortinis in Puyallup. Delish! A great way to end a great day. Joe and I didn't get home until 11:30...turned off the lights at 12:15. Can't remember the last time I stayed up that late! Does that make me sound old or what?!

Happy Anniversary

One year ago today I was the happiest girl in the world. I had a smile so big, my face hurt from smiling! It was the happiest day of my life. I've never been on such a high. Everything was perfect and I married my best friend. It's been a busy year to say the least. It's amazing that a year ago we were about ready to say "I Do" and take off on our honeymoon and this year we are frantically rushing to get everything ready for baby. I wouldn't want it any other way. Joe is an amazing person and husband and I know he's going to be the best daddy ever. I can't wait to spend many, many more years together!

Instead of celebrating in Maui, we'll be going to the Puyallup Fair tomorrow. :) We'll celebrate with baby in February instead. We kind of have a lot going on right now!

What we've been up to.....

Before...

...and after. We have grass!
Sophie testing it out

This post should be titled what JOE has been up to, not really me. I've been busy supervising, keeping him company and making sure he has snacks/drinks to keep him going! This has been about a three week project and it feels so good to look out the window and see beautiful GREEN grass. It's refreshing! One more huge project marked off of the list.

This week went so fast! My sister and brother-in-law went on a trip to celebrate their anniversary and left Sophie with my mom and dad so I was busy helping with Sophie for three days. I LOVED it. I've never had so much one-on-one time with her. I got so many loves from her, probably because mommy wasn't there. I guess I'm the second closest thing. :)

Today: lunch with Tera and Ashley. I get to meet baby Aiden! Can't wait! Not really sure what we're doing this weekend. Joe's off until Tuesday so we have a long weekend together. Monday we're going to the Puyallup Fair. Pretty excited about that but so disappointed that I'll have to miss Monday lunch with the girls! Perhaps we can figure out something a different day next week. Coffee, park lunch, cocktail/mocktail hour??

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

35 Weeks

Down to days....

I got a reminder this morning saying that we only have 35 days until our due date. Are you serious?! How did this all go so fast? It's beyond me. Made us realize that we really better start getting serious about naming No-Name. What are we going to do? Will the name come to us when we see his face? I think we both want to just decide on one of our favorites but are scared of the commitment. I never thought naming a baby could be so hard! Or maybe Joe and I are just really indecisive?

Any suggestions?!

Joe working = 34 week self portrait

34 weeks today! Getting so close! Still feeling great despite only one or two maternity outfits being comfortable. My Aunt Susie gave me a dress yesterday and it looks like a muumuu when I have it on but I really think I'm going to start wearing it every day. SO comfortable! My other favorite thing to wear now are Joe's XL Fife High School sweats. They've always been my favorite---the biggest pair of sweats in our house---but now I appreciate them even more, even if they're tighter than they've ever been! We met with our doctor on Tuesday and he said everything is still measuring perfectly for 10/14/10. That's next month!!!

Yesterday was (another) much needed girls day! Started off at 7:30 and hit the road for the Coldwater Creek Spa. My sister, mom, aunt and my cousins girlfriend and I all got pedicures then shopped, had lunch, shopped some more then came home. It was perfect! I think Joe enjoyed having the house to himself on his day off as well. Plus, he got more baby projects done. Yay!

Hope everyone is having a great day and is lucky enough to have gorgeous weather like we are today. It's supposed to be 86. Bring it on!

Fall is here

My favorite time of the year! Although I'm having a really hard time with it getting dark so early in the evening (not sure why it matters, I'm usually in bed by 9 anyway!) and staying dark so much longer in the morning. I love waking up with it light out at 5am! I wont complain though, pumpkin spice lattes are out, Halloween stuff is starting to appear in stores...LOVE this time of the year!

Yesterday was a perfect day. I woke up early, got dinner ready in the crock pot before Joe got home from work and then took off to run errands. First stop was the social security office. Talk about a great place to people watch! I entered as a Katie Brooke Vincent and left as a Katie Brooke Vincent Sanderson. Finally! I had lunch with the girls at 12:30 and it was the most relaxing lunch yet. I didn't have to rush back to work and we got to sit and talk for 2 hours. It's amazing what friend time can do for your mood! After that I met Kim and Sophie at Starbucks. A perfect ending to a perfect day! Oh! I even squeezed in my first load of baby laundry. As the picture at the top shows, I was so too worried to put them in the dryer so I hung them up. :) So cute to see a rack full of tiny clothes hanging up!

Today is another busy day. DMV to get a new license, coffee date, we have someone coming from the life insurance company to give Joe his physical at 1 and then we have a doctor appointment at 4. How did I ever fit all of this in when I was working?!

Weekend re-cap

Another busy weekend! Friday we went for dinner at Nostrana in Portland with Kim and George. It was SO good! Then we went downtown Vancouver and had ice cream at Ice Cream Renaissance. We'll definitely be going back there. All of their ice cream is homemade. Yum!

Saturday Joe and I had an all-day child birth class. It was a lot to take in but we both walked away feeling a lot more confident about everything. There were some pretty sad people in the class. Three single moms with their moms and a couple of girls who looked like they MIGHT be 17. One of those girls was at the class for her 4th time. Already has three little ones at home. The teacher asked why she decided to come for a 4th time and she said, "Gets me away from the kids for the day." Nice, huh? Joe was a great sport and handled all of the videos and discussions about what's about to happen to me great. I think he's definitely more at ease with everything than me! I didn't have any problem watching the birth video but I did have a problem watching the birthing of the placenta. Everyone says I wont remember it or see it but on the video it was the most disgusting thing I've ever seen! I guess I didn't realize that once the baby is out I have to keep pushing to get that out....hopefully everyone is right and it will be painless and memorable-less!

Yesterday was a pretty lazy day since Joe had to work all night. I read, grocery shopped and got stuff done around the house. Sundays are so different now that I don't have to be stressed about getting everything on my to-do list done before Monday. What didn't get done yesterday is on my list to do today!

Happy Monday!

Loving the 'retired' life

Ahhhhh....it feels so wonderful to be writing this at 9:15am from HOME. I thought on Friday I was making the biggest mistake ever, quitting my job. So funny how fast that feeling changed. I was worried I would wake up on Monday in a funk not having 'work' to go to. I haven't felt that way all week. In fact, I haven't even thought about work at all! Even though it hasn't even been a week since my last day, it already feels like a long time ago. I keep thinking, "I don't want to go back to that place" and then I remember I don't have to.

Monday Joe had the day off so we went and picked up our crib and rocking chair. Joe was so excited to put everything together when we got home! The crib is gorgeous! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Vincent! And our chair is perfect too. Everything is starting to come together in the nursery and it makes me feel so much more content and ready for baby. I love going in to the nursery and just sitting in the chair and imagining what it will be like in 7 weeks, holding our sweet little boy and rocking him. I get teary eyed just thinking about it, I can't wait!

Happy Thursday!

A work filled weekend

I'm definitely going to need a few days to recover from this weekend, we've been working all weekend. I came home for lunch on Friday and Joe had most of the flower beds pulled up in the front yard prepping them for new bark dust. We needed it bad. My mom helped him weed while I was at work and after we went to pick it out. We ended up hauling and using 4 1/2 yards for the front yard. It looks SO much better! I can finally look out the window and be happy with what I see. That project took all day Friday and most of yesterday.

While Joe was finishing up yesterday, my dad started in on the back yard. We haven't been able to successfully grow grass ever. Our back yard looks like Iraq. Tons of sand and no life. Dad cut the dead grass into squares and this morning Joe started pulling it all up and hauling it to the dump. 4 truck loads later it's almost all gone. Now we have a fresh start, going to plant new grass and can once again enjoy our back yard. Yes!

I helped as much as I could but stopped when Joe yelled at me for lifting and throwing 30 pound pieces of sod. If it doesn't hurt I feel like it's ok to do but per his demands, I stopped. I did more of the light work like weeding, pressure washing, spreading bark and best of all, watching. :)

We decided last minute to not go camping. The weather made a turn for the worst and although it never rained, we would've froze at the lake. And it definitely wasn't nice enough for boating. I'm glad we didn't go though, we got so much accomplished. Our little guy will have a beautiful yard to come home to now, not one filled with weeds and dead grass!

Joe's off tomorrow. And so am I! Best. Feeling. Ever. Our plan is to go pick up our glider for the nursery as well as the crib. So exciting!

Hope everyone had a great weekend!