our newest miracle

One week ago today we welcomed the newest member of our family into our lives. Even though he's been a huge part of our lives for months now, Dylan Lawrence is finally here and has already brought immense joy into our home.

So here's the short on how his arrival went.

Last Sunday evening Dan and I sat down to watch a movie (Lakeview Terrace). It was the first time in months that I was able to sit through an entire movie without having to pause it to use the restroom. As soon as the movie was over (about 10:30pm) I headed upstairs to the bathroom and I kid you not, my water broke while I was sitting on the toilet. Great visual, I know. But seriously, how lucky is that? I was a little unsure at first because it felt like he had punched my bladder and something popped, but a couple steps out of the room and the continual leakage made me certain. Knowing how quickly things went with my first 2 children we went ahead and called Dan's mom even though contractions were still far apart. We finished gathering the last few things for our bag and after Grandma arrived, we headed to St. Joseph's Hospital. Because it was late we had to check in through the ER. After being taken upstairs they checked out the situation to make sure my water had really broken (even though it was pretty obvious) and then moved me to a labor and delivery room. Dan and I placed bets as to what time we though he'd be here by (we both lost horribly) and began the waiting game. Several hours and many laps around the maternity floor lead to little change and after about 7 hours the doctor (not my OB but the one filling in for her) wanted to start pitosin. Fortunately my amazing nurse could tell that I wasn't thrilled about the idea and convinced the doctor to let us try some natural measures first. After another 3 hours my contractions were still 10 minutes apart and hadn't intensified at all. So... we started the pitosin. It still took several more hours, and let me tell you, the pitosin made my contractions twice as strong and I never want to have to use it again, but at 11:45 am we were finally ready.

At straight up noon on May 31st, we welcomed our precious baby boy into the world. He weighed 7lbs 2.3 oz and was 19 inches long. He resembles is brothers, but definitely has his own features as well.

Dylan has taken to nursing like a champ and though I'm sore, it is so rewarding to sit and nurse my baby in the way God intended. By the time we left the hospital Dylan had lost 5oz, which is perfectly normal, but a week later he has gained it back plus another 5oz. I guess I now know that he is indeed eating enough.

It's amazing how much, and how quickly such a small person can change your life. Even more amazing is how the love I have for my children continues to grow. I don't have to divide my love among them giving less to my first 2 children to make room for the new baby. The love I have is simply multiplied.

Collin LOVES to hold Dylan.
Dressed and ready to go home

Trying out his cradle

My 3 perfect boys

100 and more

It's been a while since I updated my blog and posted pictures of my precious children. It's about time, right? I thouht so. Here are some pics of things that happened in April.

My children got goggles for Easter (to play in the pool at Mama and Papa's house of course) and had to wear them in the bathtub.

My husband turned 27 on the 23rd and I made him an amazing 2 layer triple fudge cake with Reeces Pieces in the middle.

The boys enjoyed the cake thoroughly.

We made some music in the kitchen.

Painted sticks to decorate a pencil can for Papa's birthday.

Played dressup...nothing makes a mommy more proud than to see her little boy wear a purple skirt.

Collin hung out with is "wife". They fight like an old married couple anyhow :)

And every Tuesday we've been having a playdate with a friend.

It's been so nice to have some adult interaction every Tuesday. I still have my daycare kiddos, but my friend Denise and her little girl (Collin's "wife") come over and play. We go outside and to the park when the weather is nice and eat picnic lunches.

In other news: I'm now 35 weeks pregnant and counting down. I'm starting to feel fat and swollen and ready for this baby to be here. Only 4 more weeks of daycare and then my baby boy is free to come. My "nesting" goes in spurts. One (okay maybe 2 days) day I scrubbed the entire kitchen floor on my hads and knees because I didn't feel like the mop did a good enough job. Wow was I tired after that! I've been wiping down cabinet doors and counter tops like nobody's business and disinfecting every inch of my house. I will not bring my baby home to a germy disorganized house!

Oh, and this is my 100th blog post. Yay! I feel like I should have a giveaway to celebrate. But I have nothing to give away, so I'll just say "Thank you to all my faithful readers! I hope you enjoy watching my beautifl babies grow in pictures 1/100th as much as I enjoy actually being here for it."

I don't want my children to be happy

I found this post through a friend and had to share. The words are so true. We should all want this for our children.

spring break rewind

Spring Break has come and gone. So sad. I don't have photos to upload at the moment (cause I'm lazy and don't want to load them on my computer at the moment) but we had an awesome spring break.
My boys (that includes Dan) and I got to spend some quality time together, and Dan and I got some time alone without the children. That rarely happens.
Tuesday I got a day with some of my girlfriends just hanging out, eating and chatting. Wednesday Dan and I drove to Tulsa to visit some friends and eat at Joe's Crab Shack. And Thursday was by far the BEST DAY EVER!
In the morning we took the boys to the zoo. Both of them LOVED feeding the giraffes! After that we ate lunch at Cinnamon's Deli. Yum! We went home, the boys took good naps, and then we played outside. While I worked on starting dinner we heard the ice cream truck and ran to buy a ginormous popcicle. The boys didn't even eat 1/4 of it. My parents came over for dinner that evening and stayed to play with the boys. We had grilled pizza and for desert, raspberry jello cake. Dan went to wrestling practice that evening and my mom stayed to help clean up and bathe the boys while my dad cut down some bushes in the backyard. We spent most of the day with the windows open and got to enjoy the fresh warm air. Of course the snow came the next day, but seriously. THE BEST DAY EVER! I wish we had time for more days like that.
The rest of break was good, and coming back to reality was harsh. But, only a few months of school left, then we'll have a new baby and a summer to enjoy. Yay!

Oh have I mentioned that Collin is potty trained? He's such a super stud. Wearing his underwear all day (except for the pull up at nap time just to be safe) and he's been dry through nearly every nap for more than a week. Not to mention he's dry through the night. Having daycare kids back set him back yesterday, but today he's back to being awesome. He got to pick out new underpants over spring break, and today Dan is bringing a small fish tank home for him to have on his dresser (since there is no longer a changing pad up there). I'm so proud of my little man. He amazes me more and more each day!

Happy Birthday Ronan!

I can't even believe that an entire year has gone by so quickly. My sweet baby Ronan is big 1 year old today. It is amazing how much your life changes when you have children, and how the love in your heart can expand. Ronan has been such a blessing and a joy in our lives. He is so loving and fun and I can't imagine not having him. He starts my day off right when I get him out of bed and he lays his head on my shoulder and pats my back. Such a snuggler.

We started our day off right this morning with chocolate chip pancakes and chocolate milk for breakfast.
Then Collin gave Ronan his gift. 2 Busy Town books.

After daddy got home we took a trip to the store and let Ronan pick out an Elmo doll to snuggle with. Collin always has Manny and doesn't like to share. Now Ronan has his own snuggle toy. When we got home, Ronan opened his gifts while the pizza cooked.

This is the cake that I made for him. The kid LOVES Elmo! We have a tradition of not letting our children have sweets until their first birthday. This cake was entirely for Ronan, aside from the small slice he shared with Collin.

I think it's safe to say he enjoyed his cake!

And this is what it looked like just before he finished.

Time to get clean!

What a fun day!

Happy Birthday sweet boy! We love you!