Our New Family of Five

I love taking photos. But, I can't be in the photos when I'm taking them. So, I asked my friend to take some family photos when the baby was 10 days old. Here's what she came up with. There are so many to sift through, but these were some of my favorites...

Hello

Our little guy is 3 weeks old already! He is such a good baby. He is very easy going and very calm. If sleeping were in the Olympics, he'd take the gold! He can fall asleep in the middle of a cry. No joke! At times, we cannot wake him up. He actually can sleep through an entire bath! Now, you may think this is any parents' dream. And, it was, but the hard part is that he wasn't gaining weight quickly enough. He wasn't waking to eat and when he ate, he was pretty sleepy. So, my milk supply was running low and he was on the slow end of growth. We've done some work and are still working at it, but we are getting there! He's up to 8lb 12oz and becoming more alert. 

He is not sleeping through the night. We are usually up every 2-3 hours, though some nights he'll to a 4-5 hour stretch. I am so thankful that the big boys are old enough to play in the house while I sleep in or take a nap. Plus, having Kevin home has been a blessing for the extra help as well.

These photos were taken around 10 days old...

Below are photos from his nursery. It isn't officially done yet, but for now it is looking pretty cute!

The big brothers made these before he was born. The monkey was Big Brothers and the tiger is Biggest Brother's hand print photo. I love how he has the tiger with the fur of his prey hanging out of his mouth. That seems so fitting for a baby nursery!!!

We sold our old baby stuff a few months before we found out we were pregnant again. So, we started over. This room was done from Craigslist, Goodwill and garage sales. It also happens to be my favorite nursery of the 3 we've done. That globe in the corner is actually a light. It has 3 different settings and is perfect for the late night feedings! There is a changing table and rocking chair when you first walk in that aren't in this photo.

Below is my favorite part of the room. Kevin thinks it looks girly, but it makes me happy to look at it when I am up feeding the little man during the night!

And what about the big boys? Well, we're stuck at home a lot more right now. We are working at removing a tree stump from the front yard, so in the meantime, the boys love to fill it with water and make mudpits for their Hot Wheels. 

And, this is the updated room that the big boys share. It was already a Star Wars room, but we had to get new beds and redo the closet to fit 2 boys and all their stuff. They have added a bunch of their own Star Wars creations all around to make it more their own!

We are slowly adjusting to life with a newborn again! We've been blessed with great friends bringing us meals and gifts. Kevin's mom was here to help for a week. Once we get a little more sleep, I'm sure we'll be back in the baby groove! Thank goodness for the late night Olympics to keep us up while we wait for the little one to go to bed!

Please forgive my ramblings. This has taken all day to write and I'm sleep deprived!

Meet the Baby

We've been home now for almost 5 days and we're slowly settling into a new routine. It's going well so far. He's a good natured baby. He's sleeping and eating well so far. I'm hoping we stay on this course!

These first four were still at the hospital. In some pictures he reminds me of Nathan and then in others and in person he reminds me of Brennen. It will be fun to see how he grows!

He has long fingers and toes and was born with crazy long fingernails!

These next few were the first day home. He's a cuddly little guy.

He loves to find his fingers or thumb and suck. We have never had a thumb sucker and are trying to get him on a pacifier. It's easier to take those away later!

These were a fun treat Granny had sent to our house. The boys (and I) are enjoying a treat here and there from the bouquet!

It's amazing how fast he's nestled himself into our hearts and family. Though it's not even a week, I can't imagine our family without him. We are so blessed and grateful.

Welcome Baby!

He finally made his entrance! Colton Graham was born Monday night, July 16 at 11:24 pm. He weighed 7 lbs 15 oz and is 22 inches long. All is well and we are home. Hard to believe he'll be one week old tomorrow! Time flies when you're sleep deprived!

Warning: Labor story following...

On Monday, I wasn't feeling great and was a little grouchy and tired. The boys and I drove out to pick up my last baby necessity- a new pump. When we got home, I decided to take a nap. After waking up I had the feeling that maybe my water was leaking. My water had broken with Biggest Brother, so I knew what that felt like. This was different. My doctor had said to call even if I wasn't sure. So, I made the call. My doctor was out and it was an on-call doctor. She said it was probably nothing, but to head to the hospital just in case. So, the boys grabbed their bags and we grabbed ours. (I also washed out a few drawers in the fridge, just in case we didn't come back home!) The boys went to the neighbor's house, but we told them most likely we'd be back soon and this probably wasn't "the real thing."

We got to the hospital around 5pm. They checked us in and settled us in a room and tested the fluid. Thank goodness we had gone in- since they discovered I had a leak somewhere in the bag of waters. This was it- "the real thing". I started out at 3cm dilated and 50% effaced with mild contractions I could barely feel. They made us walk the halls until 8:30 and checked again. Not much progress. I was still laughing and nice to everyone- so they figured I wasn't in true labor yet. I was still 3cm and now 80% effaced. So, they wanted to start pitocin. I had had that with my previous 2 babies and was determined to avoid the medical interventions this time. So, we talked the doctor into breaking the rest of my water instead. She didn't think it would do much. But, by 9:05 I had my first true painful contraction. From that point forward I had contraction after contraction about 30 seconds long and just 1-2 minutes apart with increasing intensity.

I had been told to head to the hospital when my contractions were 5 minutes apart lasting 1 minute for an hour. Since this never happened during my labor at the hospital I was convinced I wasn't progressing very quickly. However, the nurse brought in the baby warmer and was setting it all up for the baby. She told me get into the jacuzzi tub for 10 contractions. I couldn't understand why we'd go through all that work for 10 lousy contractions. I don't think I had 10, but it was getting so painful and she and Kevin had to drag me out (because at this point I wasn't laughing and nice anymore!). She wanted to check my progress. I was convinced I'd only be at like 6cm or something- but she said she knew it would be more. By the time I was on the table, she checked and I was 8 1/2. They called the Dr in and the next contraction I was 9cm. With 2 more I was 10!!!

I asked what time it was. They told me 11 something. I couldn't believe this little boy was coming so soon. It took about 4, maybe 5 pushes and he was out!

This was my first delivery without and epidural and medications and inductions. I thought it would be more calm, less chaotic, and would give me time to relax in between contractions. And though that wasn't the case, we had taken a great birthing class and for that I am grateful. We had packed our bags full of supplies and things to help in the process. But, every time Kevin would start to walk away to get something to help, I would start calling him back as another contraction would start.  I had a lot of back labor and Kevin would push really hard on my back. He honestly couldn't have pushed hard enough for me, but it did relieve some of the pain. I knew we'd both be sore the next day! Though it was a fast and crazy delivery, both of us were calm since we knew the process.

I guess I wouldn't describe myself as calm. The nurse told me later that the lady in the room next to me was planning on an unmedicated birth, but after she heard me she was reconsidering the epidural. The nurse said I was good advertisement for the epidural!!! Overall, it was what I hoped for- a healthy fast delivery of a healthy little boy!

The next morning, Kevin brought the big brothers up to meet their new little brother. They were pretty excited to see him. Nathan said, "Is that really our baby?" Brennen ended up holding him and soothing him for close to 2 hours straight. 

He had his first bath with the nurse in our room so the boys could watch. He didn't particularly love it!

Then, we got our first family photo. More to come soon!

Baseball, T-ball, and more summer fun...

No baby yet. I'm due in about 5 days. I've never been pregnant this long. So, even though I'm not overdue, I feel like I am. I am going crazy....

Here is what we're doing to fill our time until this new little guy decides to make his appearance...

Smores on the grill

Lots of baseball and t-ball. This is our first year having them play a sport at the same time. My car is filled with baseball gear, shade tents and chairs, but it's been a fun season! Big Brother ends today and Little Brother has one more week to go. They can't wait to add to their trophy collection!

Little Brother has come a long way this summer with going under water and trying to swim, even if he still puts his goggles on upside down!

Spending time with friends- (at a favorite nearby park with train and creek and a candy factory tour in downtown Denver)

Lots of bike rides. This was for the 4th of July Bike parade, but many mornings you'll find the boys whizzing along while I try to keep up and get this baby moving!

Hopefully next time you hear from us we'll be a family of 5!

Full Term!

I'm 37 weeks today! This little guy could come any day now. In some ways I hope he comes sooner than later, but that is scary too!

We had an ultrasound on Tuesday and they estimate him to be 6 lbs 15 oz already. I don't know why we can't just have a little guy this time around! My babies are bigger a month before my due date than many of my friends' babies when they are overdue! At least he's still looking healthy and growing. Can't ask for more than that.

I was 1 cm dilated and 50% thinned out. (Is that too much information for a blog?) I had my 1st at 38 weeks and was induced with my 2nd at 37 weeks. We'll see when this little one decides to come.

My friend did a maternity session for me on Monday night this week. She took amazing photos and even though I prefer to be on the other side of the camera, I decided I needed to post these...

This pregnancy has been so much easier for me than the others. In some ways, I was always on edge with the older boys. We'd done fertility to conceive them and went through losses and struggles. So, when I was finally pregnant I didn't trust that things could turn out well. This time around was a big surprise and it just seems meant to be. Of course I've had the common pregnancy issues- nausea, food aversions, heightened smells, swollen nasty ankles, back aches, etc. However, emotionally I've been much more relaxed and at ease. It's amazing how quickly time has passed and that this little guy will be joining our family any day now. 

I have noticed in the past few days a real change in my energy and stamina. It has gone down. Not sure if it's the ridiculous record heat we've had or signs that the end is coming near. Either way, I am grateful for my boys that are big enough to help out some and play together pretty well, as well as Kevin being home a lot more since his job is coming to an end this week. There's a lot of change happening around here and though it's overwhelming at times, God is giving me peace and helping me get through it all one day at a time- and I am grateful for that!