Planes

1. Cousins

We added a new cousin to the group and these two were THRILLED.  They were significantly more excited to meet Jack than Cameron and Owen.  Significantly.  I walked in the door and was followed by these two almost the entire time.  

 Eloise sat down to read him a book, because clearly this is what mommies do for their babies. LOVE.

 If you look closely Eloise was telling Sawyer to "shhhh"  She was non stop with telling us to "shhhh"

 She got her baby and named him JackJack for the evening.  

**As you can tell, I was right by the front door.  We had just walked in.**

2. Baby Ezra
Oh my goodness I am in love with ANOTHER baby.  I feel extremely blessed and oh so grateful to walk this life with Shelby.  The boys finally met and look forward to soooo many more days ahead.

3. Paper Airplanes
Obsessed.  Absolutely obsessed.  For over a month the boys have been asking for a paper airplane birthday party.  They make at least 10 planes a day.  They are everywhere.  On Monday I decided to make it more of a game and put their energy into something fun.  With Jack taking so much of my time I am trying to find activities (that don't always include the iPad) for the boys.  They really enjoyed the airplane game so it was a win for mom.  I don't get many wins lately so I will take it.

4. My parents
My mom has been coming over every morning to watch Jack while I drive the boys to school.  It has been freezing cold out so her help has been such a blessing.  The past two days she has also come back in the afternoon so I can get a full hour to two hour nap.  My dad picks the boys up every afternoon and helps me around the house and helps take care of Jack or watch the twins while I pump.

I have been struggling significantly more then I anticipated.  The past two days I have had a ton more pain in my left side.  I know that this is normal since I have probably been doing WAAAYY too much.  Grateful for my parents to help me get through the past few days. ...and all week. ...and really helping me get through life in general.

5.  School Research
Greg has been doing a lot of research on the next phase of schooling for the boys.  I am going to do a few tours next week but having him look into the numbers and statistics of the schools has been EXTREMELY helpful.  I am grateful that he is able to do some of that leg work and we are able to collaborate on the results.  To be honest, I wish that we could just win the lottery and send them to private schools.  It would be SO. MUCH. EASIER.

Rouzer Weekend

1. Bowling

Brian and Lauren came in this weekend and we took everyone bowling.  It was great and the boys loved it.  Jack slept the entire time, I enjoyed a beer, and the whole trip was successful.  Glad to get out of the house and have a chance to play.

 #thestruggleisreal

2. Lauren and Brian
They made the trip from New York City this weekend to come meet baby Jack.  It was so great to have them here.  They spoiled the boys and helped us continue to survive these short days of little sleep and little energy.  While they were here Lauren was telling me how much she loved this picture of Jack.  I had never seen it.  I love it too!

Thank you guys for coming to visit, showering us with love and gifts and helping us survive.  Wish we lived closer!

3. Snow

The boys were FINALLY able to play outside in the snow this year.  They have played a few times at Gregs but here there has not been a ton of snow and I have not had the energy to go outside and play. Mike and Brian went out and built a snowman and wrestled around.  Lauren and I stayed inside.  It was great.

4. Books sold

I have been trying to get a lot of the STUFF out of our house.  This past week I went through all of the hundreds of books.  Both Mike and I love books so our home is filled to the brim with books.  I took 4 bags of adult books to Goodwill and then I just sold 3 bags of kids books on Facebook.  Pretty excited to get more stuff out of the house AND to have a bit of extra cash.  

5. Sleep

All the boys in the house are ASLEEP.  I still struggle with my sleep but the current plan is to go to bed extra early tonight.  Mike slept in this morning and is taking a nap now and then after the next pump/feed I will try to start getting some sleep.  I am a bit nervous for the week ahead but hopefully it will all run smoothly.

6. FoxyBaby

Baby Fox is HERE.  Mom and baby are both doing great.  I am still anxiously waiting to hear if he has a name but excited the Shelby and I both made it through our pregnancies and deliveries in one piece. 

  

weight check

1. 2 hour delay

This morning we had a 2 hour delay.  This sometimes can throw our entire day off...which it had the power to do to us today...but instead we embraced and it was WONDERFUL.  I am a morning person.  I am really my best self in the wee hours right when I wake up.  I was able to give this part of me fully to the twins.  They both eventually got into my bed and we snuggled and watched cartoons.  It was an easy peasy morning and I am so glad that we were able to have the time.

2. Pumping

Tomorrow I am getting another weight check for Jack and meeting with a lactation consultant.  He didn't gain any weight last week and then with my new routine this week my milk has started to be less.  Today since our schedule was thrown off I pumped and gave him a bottle.  It was heavenly.  At this moment I have no desire to go back.

3. Pictures

Mike has been out of town all week so I am CONSTANTLY sending him pictures of Jack.  This morning we did FaceTime with all 5 of us...6 including Nash.  Looking forward to him coming home tomorrow afternoon and seeing us in person!

4. New Couch

Today I got a new couch...well new to me.  My parents are actually getting  new couch so we got their HUGE HUGE old couch.  It's only a few years old.  The picture below I actually took one of the pieces out.  I am sitting here typing right now and I am extremely comfortable.   Now I just need to fit it into our space and make it look wonderful in here.

5. Two Weeks DONE
The first few lines of the Darius Rucker song, "It won't be like this for long," describes these past two weeks perfectly.  No sleep, lots of coffee.

12 photos.

Excuse my lack of editing on these pictures.  I basically just didn't feel like it.  Here are three more pictures of our sweet Jack.  Super happy that we went ahead and got newborn photos.  

2. What?!!  Such Smart Boys
Yesterday after school the boys wanted to write letters to their friends.  So I spelled out the words verbally to them and they wrote the letters.  It is amazing how quickly they learn.  I was super impressed.  Now I just need to start sounding out the words and have them try and figure out the spelling themselves.  Hmmm....that sounds difficult.  Haha.  Regardless, I love these super smart boys.

2. Purging
We had the boys go through their costumes and toys AGAIN.  We just did this around Christmas time but as I sit at home feeding all day I constantly want things OUT of the house.  It is probably because I watch a lot of HGTV.  Cameron was playing in his Thomas tent sometime last week and I tried to get a similar picture of one of my favorites.  The one on top was from a few years ago.  Yes, you read that correctly, years.

3. Breathing treatments
We have started breathing treatments again with Cameron.  He has a terrible cough.  I made him tag along to Jack's first appointment and Kara said his lungs were clear so breathing treatments are all we need to do!  He hates them still but it isn't as bad as when we was younger.  This is a picture of Cameron laying on the ground before school yesterday.  He was under the weather and that always leads to a bit more tears.

4. Valentine's Day
Easy Peasy Day with Rouzer.  He made me breakfast and then Rick and Connie came in town for a short 3 hour visit.  We went to a new restaurant (new to us) called North End BBQ.  It was great.  Jack slept through the entire thing!  It was peaceful and great to get out of the house. The night before I was getting extremely stir crazy and we went to dinner.  It did not go as smoothly.  I even found myself breast feeding on a toilet in the bathroom within the first 15 mins.  It was exhausting.  I will also say that Mike REALLY has his shit together.  It is a blessing for our family to have him keeping us sane.  Grateful.

5. Jack is laying down.  Asleep.
Jack has been pretty fussy today.  He is also EXTREMELY gassy.  Like more gassy then his two parents combined.  That is even hard to imagine.  Anyways, he is finally sleeping and not in my arms.  The garage door just opened and now the crazies are home.  Cheers!  Time for a glass of wine.

Erin

1. My sister 

Grateful that I was able to share some small bits of motherhood with my sister.  I really wish that she was here to share in the joy of sweet baby Jack.  In the past 24 hours or so I thought that I felt her presence or signs that she was sharing in our joy, signs that she was watching over us.  Today it has turned into a bit of sadness that I am not able to share the joy with her.  That I am not able to talk about breast feeding, lack of sleep, and the insane amount of food that I can eat while still losing weight.   I miss Erin a LOT LOT.  And I wish that she could be here to experience this crazy, wild life by my side.

Laurie made this blanket for us.  She used the same material for a blanket for Sawyer and then Eloise and my sister loved it.  She made it for us as a gift from my sister.  I am so grateful for this gift.  And for my sister.

2. Nurse Jackie
I am HATING sitting and watching TV.  It's extremely difficult for me to read while breast feeding but the TV is getting on my nerves.  Yesterday evening I found Nurse Jackie on demand.  So that is currently what I am watching while I sit inside the house and feed Jack.

3. Friendship Day
At the boys school they have Friendship Day...not Valentines Day.  So this morning when I gave them two small heart shaped boxes of gummies we celebrated Friendship Day.  As I was hugging Cameron goodbye I said, "Happy Valentines Day."  He looked at me and said, "what?! I didn't know it was Valentines Day.  I thought that was passed." He cracks me up.

The actual point of this is to say that this morning, when I told the boys they have a surprise for Friendship Day, the first thing that they said was, "Mom, I haven't made your surprise yet."  It was so sweet.  They were so concerned that they didn't have anything to give.

4. 3 months off
I love my job and my patients.  Yesterday Shelby brought over 3 more bags of gifts and I had a patient even send me flowers to the hospital.  I love my job.  But so extremely grateful for 3 months off.  And if I could take more and Barb would hold my job.....I would take more time.

5. Mike
He has been taking such great care of us.  It will be hard without him next week.  Extremely grateful for him.

Updated

1. Jack is a WEEK

It has been a little bit crazy at our house.  Jack turned a week old today and we are still working on getting the swing of things.  The healing continues to remind me that it is absolutely insane what the human body can do.  What the body can endure is amazing.  Absolutely amazing.  

 Pure exhaustion. 

2. Fresh Hair cuts
We finally had hair cuts!!  We let the boys look at some Pinterest photos to see what they wanted their hair to look like and these are the models.  The hair cuts are long over do and I am super excited.

3. Newborn Photos

We took newborn photos today.  I don't have anything like this with the boys and it is something that I really wish I spent the money on at the time.  This afternoon we met with Raw Sugar Photography and I am super excited to see the finished product.  Jack pooped on me TWICE.  ...but that is besides the point.... 

4. Boys at movie
This afternoon Bruce took the boys to a movie.  They have been talking about it all week and these few short hours without the craziness has been amazing.  They had a great time and came back filled with sugar.

5. Bier Brewery Growler
I have been craving a growler for awhile now.  For months.  We finally got two growlers today. Though I only had one drink it was still all that I dreamed.

I am a posting fool

I added this pictures last night but not writing the post until today.  I am exhausted with piles of stuff to do but my wonderful husband usually does most of it so that makes me pretty lucky.  

1. Mike

Holy what an amazing man for our family.  I can't say enough about how grateful that I feel that he is part of this team.  He works so hard making sure that the four of us are safe and happy.  He is an amazing step dad and new daddy to baby Jack.  He is my encourager and my number one fan.  

A few things about this picture...first, there are a LOT of different patterns.  It is a lot for the eye to take in.  Second, this was Jack's first bottle.  I have been having issues with him feeding and then pumping and supply vs demand and on and on.... anyways we tried a little bit from a bottle.  It was successful though we decided to stay away from that route for awhile. 

2. The boys
Our super wild, extremely flexible little/big ones.  They have been very good (since the manners have started to be reinforced) and very easy for us.  I am sure the change to the household is not easy for young souls (especially Owen) but I have been continually impressed with their resilience and love for each other, baby Jack, and our family.  Mike and I are working on very little sleep so I am sure that we are not as pleasant or as patient as usual.  Grateful that these boys have given us some slack and still make our home loud, wonderful, and full of love.

3. Free Food
Those that know me well know for my love of food and love of free things.  When you have a new addition to the house people bring over food in mass quantities.  It is pretty awesome.  Not only that but people are bringing over stuff that I am actually craving.  Strange.  Like Costco Mac and Cheese, Deep Dish pizza, and salad.  Yum.  Now to write all the thank you notes.....

4. Healing
I am continually healing from surgery.  I feel MUCH better today than yesterday and MUCH better than the days before that.  I was pretty miserable.  Glad things are getting better.

5. Shower
This morning I had a shower.  I was able to actually do it all myself including get dressed and not have extreme incisional pain.  I feel like a new woman.  I am out of those terrible grey pants and back in my yoga pants.  I know....surprising.  We also got out of the house today for a weight check and quick trip to the store.  Feeling successful.

 Sawyer's 5th birthday party.  We were not able to go but grateful the my parents took the boys.  They had a blast and then went straight with grandpa Pat to her hotel to watch movies and play in the pool. They were super spoiled and slept great that night!

6. 40th Wedding Anniversary

My parents celebrated their anniversary this weekend.  Last year Erin and I discussed trying to do something like a surprise party or similar for them but as everything played out this past year that became pushed onto the back burner.  A few weeks ago I realized that nothing was planned but something still needed to happen in order to celebrate such a wonderful thing.  SOOOOO last weekend Mike and I picked up a St. Elmo's gift card and made them a reservation.  On Saturday evening Mike picked them up and drove them downtown and then set up Uber on my moms phone so we could pick up the cab on the way back home as well.  I think that they had a lot of fun (at least they say that they did).  Cheers!!

Jack Aaron

He is HERE!! Jack finally made an appearance on Wednesday at 4:35pm.  Overall things went pretty well.  Basically recovering from a C-section BLOWS but I knew that ahead of time so I have been mentally prepared.  I was not able to eat for almost 48 hours (that was something that I was NOT prepared for) but I think this was my biggest hiccup in the experience.  They even let us leave the hospital after 48 hours.  We have been extremely tired but things are pretty wonderful in our house right now.  I am MAKING myself sit down and document a few words because I know that I will want these moments later but all I truly want to do is SLEEP.

 Jack was 8lbs 9oz and 21 inches long.  Yes, he is HUGE.

 These helped me survive the hospital.  Though I was not allowed to eat, I was allowed to drink.  I haven't had much caffeine since I have been home but I have a feeling tomorrow will be another Starbucks morning with a white chocolate mocha.  No fat. No whip.

 Mike really wanted the baby to have chubby cheeks.  

 When we first got home last night the boys were nervous to hold Jack.  It was a busy day with the grandparents and I think pretty over whelming in general.  Today was a bit different and they asked to hold him a lot.  It will be interesting to see how things change and progress around here. 

**These next few pictures were taken BEFORE the hospital.**

  The one of Cameron in the tent is very similar to one I have of him a few years ago. 

 Our last meal as the four of us. We had peanut butter waffles.  

A paint by number wood set kept them busy the last night that I was home.  They are obsessed with arts and crafts.

A quick 5 things that I am grateful for tonight....

1. Breast feeding is going well

2. The grandparents took great care of the boys ... though they have come back with terrible manners and somewhat of attitudes.  I told them that tomorrow will be a manners boot camp to get back into the swing of things.

3. We are all home from the hospital and healthy

4. Jack is not a big crier...so far.  Only when he is getting his diaper changed.

5. I was finally able to eat in the hospital.  I decided to have a Jimmy Johns sandwich and it was pretty wonderful.