3 weeks of Josie

I think I've been so busy holding and Instagraming our sweet girl, that I forgot to take and post some real picture of our little Miss. 3 weeks old today--I can hardly believe time has flown so quickly! We are adjusting to life with a newborn--and no to life with a newborn without my mom here--and next week we will adjust yet again to life with a newborn without my mom and without Brandon. Paternity leave has rocked! :)

Here is Josie and my mom...1 day old.    

Spencer was so happy to hold her--


And she has a very proud daddy!


I cannot get over the cutenes on Carter's face--this little guy has been SO incredibly happy to have a new sister--he is such a great helper and loved Josie SO much!


She looks so big in the pictures--but her sweet little self is just that--LITTLE!






When she was a few days old, we went back to the hospital for her checkup and they felt her bilrubin levels were too high, so we were given orders to sun bathe our girl--she loved this! Good thing, because it took 2 more appointments to get us in the clear!



While she laid in the sun, the boys read her stories. CUTEST THING EVER. It was so, so sweet--


We finally gave our girl a bath when she was 5 days old--for some reason I was always super anxious to give the bath before, but this time we just waited. No reason--just did. But she LOVES baths!!


I ADORE snuggling next to my girl. It's been my favorite thing to have her wake up after the kids go to school, and lay next to me while I nurse her and we snuggle.


At one week, I did some pictures of her--
























My mom, on Mother's Day, with all the kiddos--




At 3 weeks, Miss Josie has more alert times--but she definitely cherishes her beauty sleep, at least during the day. This girl is a SNUGGLE BUG to the max--she LOVES to sleep on our chests or next to us--


She has officially been on her first road trip and stayed in a hotel, when we went to look for housing in Amarillo. She loved falling asleep on the hotel pillow when I was nursing her, and could stay there curled up on the pillow for hours! And she always finds comfort in holding our finger.

At 3 weeks, she still has her dark hair--and I really hope it stays! I can tell she is growing--as of last week she was up to 6 lb 10 oz. She's getting quite the double chin on her--but her body still remains teeny tiny. Newborn clothes are finally starting to fit a little better, and the diaper is closing better around her legs--I truly cherish every chance I get to hold my sweet girl, because I know how quickly they grow and change--



3 weeks old--cannot believe it! So much love for this sweet girl--so much has changed since she came into our family. 3 weeks, yet not even able to remember life without her!

Double Digits

My dearest Jenna,

I cannot believe you've officially entered double digits! It seems as though one day you were 3 and the next you're all grown up and well on your way to being a teenager. That's a scary thought! :)

At 10, you are what some may call bossy--I call it motherly. :) You like to keep the boys in line and will often be overheard redirecting them to do their jobs or to follow instructions. This is one part of you that reminds me very much of myself as a child. You are amazing with Josie--you hold her, rock her when she is fussy, sing to her, change diapers, and getting her dressed is one of your favorite parts of the day. I hope you know how grateful I am for all your help! It has been an incredible blessing. I am so appreciative of your desire to learn to babysit and to be a good helper.

With our upcoming  move and an exchange of phone numbers to keep in touch with friends, you have suddenly discovered the joy of phone calls. You have found many excuses reasons to call your friends here, and I have a feeling that this is only the beginning. I was SO happy to discover you had some great girls to be your BFF at school. I have a feeling that your sweet personality will allow you to find the same thing in your new school.

At 10 you are sensitive..to challenges, to change, to being asked to do things you don't want to do. Oh, the meltdowns we have had! But you're also sensitive to the needs of others. You are always thinking of ways to help those in need, whether by praying or brainstorming fundraising ideas, etc. You are thoughtful and kind. I have a whole file of notes from you to prove it. ;)

You are so creative. I love the way your mind works--and I especially love the way you can usually get the boys to play along with your current make believe. From pet shops to daycares and everything in between, the boys are thrilled to play along. I love that at 10, you're not too big for imagining. For playing. For innocence. For hanging signs all over the house announcing impromptu dance recitals and play school schedules and such. You remind me of all that's magical about childhood. And I love you so much for that.

At 10, you are still small. Finally hitting the 4 ft mark and weighing in at just over 50 pounds. In many ways your half pint stature has allowed me to put off acknowledging that you are, indeed, getting older. When your clothes size is several digits behind your age, it's easy to ignore reality and keep you young a little bit longer. :) But as much as I wish I could keep you small forever, I have witnessed amazing growth in you and am so impressed by the person you're becoming.

Jenna, I remember so vividly the day you were born and the months leading up to it. I never could have dreamed that the baby I carried for 9 very long months would someday be a 10 year old girl with beautiful, long hair, an infectious smile, and motherly instinct just bursting from every part of you! You amaze me. You inspire me. And you remind me just how special it is to be your mom...

I love you baby big girl. To the moon and back...and then around again.
Happy double digits birthday.
Love, Mom

We are moving to.....

It has been a very long, long year of searching, praying, waiting, crying, working, following leads, letdown, hope, and patience... And we can FINALLY see the pieces of the puzzle coming together... There are still many things that need to happen to have this all work out--but we feel this has been a very divinely given opportunity and have faith that somehow things will continue to come together. We never anticipated living here--not even remotely. And the setup of the job(s) Brandon will have are not things we initially would have considered. But it's 8 hours closer to home, in a city with many of the things I had on my wish list (including a major airport--hint, hint), and we feel like ultimately this is where the Lord wants our family to go. So with tremendous excitement, I can finally announce we are moving to...

Introducing Josie: The birth story

This post has been a long time coming. :)

May 2, 2014, our sweet Josie Ann was born at 12:46 p.m. weighing 6 pounds 5 oz and being 19 3/4" long.
She has been such a great baby thus far and we are ALL so thrilled she is in our family. :)


The juicy details:

We arrived at the hospital just after 5 a.m. and went to check in at Labor & Delivery. I had really wanted to wait this pregnancy out and deliver on my own, since all of my other kids have been induced for various reasons. But several weeks ago, I realized that this may just not work, since Brandon still didn't have a job and he had several interviews to go on and things to work out, and that we have to be out of our house 5 weeks after my due date. The stresses were many and it felt like it was really just the best option. We got our date, my mom got her ticket, and we had at least one firm plan in our incredibly uncertain future. ;) I felt guilty about this for a while--but the last several days I found myself SO grateful to have that date on the horizon and just know I could be done with pregnancy and aches and pains then.

After waiting for a long while in the lobby, they finally called us back and got us set up. It was after 6 a.m. before they came in to get me hooked up the an IV. I really felt so good--we hung out and eventually went for a walk in the hall hooked up to the pitocin drip. The timing is a blur, but around 10:30ish I went back and laid down again. I felt really good, all things considered. The upped the pitocin and checked me--I was still at a 4 where I had been all morning. The came in and broke my water and then offered me fentanyl--I had about 6 people describe it to me at different times, all saying the exact same "it makes you feel like you drank a margarita". I have never had this beverage--or any alcohol at all--so it made me laugh a little because I had no idea what that would even mean. :) My contractions weren't unbearable, but I could feel them starting to get more intense and I was okay to have the edge taken off. So I took the "IV margarita" and it was instant relief. I joked with Brandon that if this is what a Margarita feels like, I may take up drinking. He knows, and I know, that is totally not true. :) But it let me rest for a good half hour and felt great!

When it started to wear off, I still didn't feel BAD, but said I would go ahead and get the epidural. The resident came in and got it started. I COULD SING HIS PRAISES ALL THE DAY LONG! It was the BEST EPIDURAL I have EVER had! Not on one side or the other. Not too heavy a dose. Blissful perfection! I napped for a little bit and suddenly my eyes popped open and I told Brandon, "CALL THE NURSE! I feel pressure". I was a little panicked that maybe my epidural was wearing off or something--because the past few epidurals have either numbed me so much I didn't know when I was ready to push, or didn't numb me enough and I just felt a complete raging burn. But sure enough, the nurse came and checked me and I was ready, ready, ready. She put my legs together to try to keep the baby from coming, and they ran to get my doctor from out of surgery.

I was trying very hard not to push at this point. I felt no pain otherwise--just the need to push. My doctor ran in with nurses gowning her as she came. She asked if I remembered how to push and I said yes. Geared up for the contraction, pushed one time and little Josie came completely out. The doctor kind of laughed, looked surprised, and said, "well, okay. Here she is!" She laid her on my chest briefly, but because she wasn't crying and hadn't had a chance to slow in the birth canal enough to get the gunk out of her lungs they had to take her over and suction it out till she had a clear pathway to breathe.

I cannot even say enough about how amazing this birth experience was. Very little pain--SO fast--so easy. It was REALLY awesome....in fact, it had me thinking, "If I knew labor would be like this again, I could totally have another baby!" But no--the reality is that I am going to close this chapter of life with the best labor story I have had. :)

Josie is my smallest baby by almost a pound! I know she isn't a preemie--but her tiny features just amaze me. She is SO itty bitty. The kids are all completely in love. They came up to the hospital several hours after I had her, but I was completely exhausted and hardly coherent, and didn't get any pictures then (although it should be noted that Carter walked in the room and asked where the baby boy was, and when we told him it was a girl, he wanted nothing to do with her and immediately turned for Brandon's iPad. He has since warmed up...) Jenna and Kaden came back with Brandon to pick me up from the hospital the next day at our mandatory 24 hour mark and I grabbed a few pics of them then. I had really wanted a birth photographer, but couldn't find anyone taking new people or they didn't feel comfortable doing it. I was really bummed--so all I have are the few pics I took from my hospital bed right before and after birth, and the couple that Brandon snapped. It will have to do.

I am SO grateful to have had such an incredible birth and labor story this time. I have felt SO good--even went to church less than 48 hours later. I adore snuggling my little dark haired girl and seeing my family all get to hold and love on her. She has changed our family forever!










(liquid diet...sprite, jello, broth, and a side of juice. yum. lol)










































(her wrist is so tiny that he band kept coming off. Even a quarter fits inside--)