~Aylah's Visit~

Aylah came up to visit again and was happy to see her brother.

She was also happy to find some yummy chocolates a friend brought by.

Sweet, sweet love!

~1 Day Old~

It didn't take long for baby boy to find his thumb!

My headache and shoulder ache pretty much kept me flat on my back for several days, but it didn't stop me from loving on my sweet little son.

Snuggled up tight!

Baby boy spent most of his morning in the nursery until they could get my blood patch finished so I would hopefully start feeling much better.  It did work, but only for a few hours.  I took advantage of every minute with him though and snuggled as much as I could.   Daddy was a great help and loved on baby boy when I wasn't able to and when he wasn't doing that he was helping me in every way imaginable!  I am so thankful for his love.

~Big Sisters~

Aylah and Grace have been so excited for baby boy to be born.  They both came up to visit him a few hours after he was born.  Aylah was head over heels in love with
her brother and Grace thought he was pretty cool but stuck to what she liked doing the best, eating mommies left overs and trying on everyone's shoes!

Aylah was so happy to see her little brother.  She couldn't get enough of him!

Grandma and Grace looking at baby boy.

Aylah couldn't wait to hold her brother.

Two very proud big sisters.

Grandma with her 3 grandbabies.

Typical Grace trying on daddies shoes.

Mommy getting a little loving from my girls.  It was very difficult for me to sit up with the spinal headache so they just layed down with me.

Aylah made "crowns" for the whole family to wear out of bulletin border.

~Baby Boy is Here~

I had a great relaxing morning, then they gave me an epidural and broke my water and baby boy was born pretty quickly after that.

Baby boy was born at 1:37 pm

8 lbs. 5 oz.

20 1/2 inches long

There is nothing sweeter than holding mommies hand right out of the womb.

I was so happy to be holding him, especially after such a tough delivery of extreme pain in my shoulders due to a spinal headache.

The nurses were measuring his head.....

...and he didn't like it much so he reached up and took it off his head and tore it in half.

A sneak peek of his blue eyes.

~Hospital Arrival~

Mike and I headed to St. Joseph hospital Tuesday, August 21 at 6 am.  We were certainly excited for this day to finally come!  We had a great nurse, Julie, who took great care of us and I was very thankful to have her as a nurse!

~Pedicures~

Aylah and I spent some time together Sunday afternoon before baby boy came.  Of course we had to treat ourselves with a pedicure so we could have pretty blue toes in honor of baby boy.

~Sissy's Shoes~

Please notice the bedhead!

Aylah is always so glad to share her shoes with Grace.

Grace has a huge obsession with shoes.  She'll often sit in Aylah's closet for hours just trying on all her shoes.  If I ever need some time by myself or need to getting something done around the house, I take Grace to the closet to play with shoes.  She came out sporting this pair of shoes the other day and was pretty excited she found a new pair. 

~Family Van~

Here we are standing in front of the new family van!  

Baby boy Sawyer is only 4 days away from his grand appearance!

~The Official Minivan~

We have officially become a minivan family!  It's actually pretty exciting for numerous reasons!

1.  It's the first car Mike and I have purchased together.

2.  It will fit our family and someone will not be left out.

3.  It has an automatic car starter which is completely bonus for living up here in the cold cold midwest.

4.  It has a dvd player which is also another great bonus for my children.

5.  Most importantly....NO MORE BENDING OVER!!!!

~Baby Swing~

We brought the swing out today, and since it is pink, I decided to lay a little boyish blanket down on top of it.  It sure is a cute swing and makes me want to see a little baby boy in there!  Of course, I'll be quite content with this little cutie until then.  It didn't take Grace long to figure out what to do. She was pretty proud of herself finding her way and getting settled in the swing all by herself.

~Sprinkler Fun~

The girls wanted to play in the sprinkler today, which was okay by me since it was in the 70's and I wasn't too uncomfortable sitting outside with them.  They had a great time and to my surprise played for about an hour even though it was a little chilly to be playing in the water.  Grace had a great time trying to copy Aylah and do what she was doing, but mostly she likes to collect water and drink as much as possible.

~No Training Wheels~

Aylah absolutely loves riding her bike.  She rides outside and inside, thankfully we have long hallways that allow her to ride in the house.  She even rides her bike with daddy when he goes on his runs around the neighborhood.  We took the training wheels off yesterday and couldn't believe that she picked it up in no time.  We started out on the little bike, but the very next day, she rode her big bike with no training wheels as well!  She loves it and is so proud of herself.  She's such a hard worker and loves to accomplish things, especially if it means having fun!

This gave Aylah something to do while we were cleaning out the garage before baby boy comes.  

Carrie, can you find the fan that use to be yours?

~Pictures for Mommy~

Since baby boy will be arriving very soon, I have been taking a nap every time Grace takes a nap in the afternoon.  Aylah usually watches a video, plays computer games or works on a project.  This very special day, I woke up and walked out of my room to find this hanging in the hallway.

Aylah is so creative, she hung 2 coloring pages in the bathroom door, so I would see them as soon as I walked out of my room.  They even have my name on them.

There is nothing like having a picture with the original artist next to her work!

~Sleeping Beauty~

Aylah is now sleeping in her bed all by herself.  Which after 4 years of sleeping in mommy and daddy's room, this is a huge accomplishment.  We have really enjoyed her sleeping in our room, it gives us more time together, plus there is nothing like watching her sleep and waking up to her beautiful face every morning.  However, I was needing a little bit more time alone and time to rest with the baby coming, so we made the change.  Aylah has done a great job, except there are a few rituals that must be followed every night.  The lights have to be on, all her animals have to be in "order" and pink puppy has to be on her head, then she has to be covered up with her blanket, hug and kiss and promised mommy will return to check on her within a few minutes.  Most of the time she is fast asleep before mommy returns, but there are times that she's waiting with a big ole smile on her face to make sure I'll keep my promise.  If she has to go to the bathroom, she likes to sneak out of her room, walk as quietly as she can to the restroom, close the door, turn on the light, then potty and sneak back so we'll never know she was there. 

Aylah sleeping with all her animals.

~ Major Bed Head~

While Grace is eating her breakfast, I notice this might possibly be the worst case of bed head I have ever seen!

~Bathing Suit Overboard~

Grace was playing in mommy and daddy's room this morning and she came out wearing all of my bathing suits.  I'm pretty impressed she got all of this on, including my flip flops.

I love how she is holding it all up with one hand so she can walk.  And look at that sweet innocent smile.

~Waffles and PraiseBaby~

Grace hanging out on the couch, eating waffles and drinking juice while she watches PraiseBaby.  I love how her sweet little feet are crossed.