Farewell to Brian

These pictures were taken the morning Brian left for Iraq. A sad day but we all fared well, we knew it was coming. We are making the best of it. We know we have to think about the good of each day. It has been great that we have been able to see each other via skype twice a day or at least talk on the phone every morning and night. River seems to be having a hard time with all of the changes going on lately but over all I think he is doing OK. He is my special big boy. Reed is turning out to be a very easy going little baby. He is super sweet and loves to interact with people. He has the cutest smile and his baby vocabulary is growing. I am sooo tired from getting up with hi at nite but I do enjoy the alone time with him. I also LOVE to carry him around in his sling/carrier. It keeps him close and happy and I can still interact with River.

Last Camping Trip of the Season

Brian was able to take a few days off before he had to leave to Iraq. We planned to stay around the house and enjoy being a family. Over the weekend my parents went to Westport. Come Friday evening Brain and I, in the middle of cooking out, decided we just had to take one last trip to the coast. After taking entirely to long to pack (what were we thinking?) with a baby to care for and multiple wrestling matches with Reed's infant car seat we were on our way. It started pouring rain on our way out. To say the least it was a rough start. However we ended up having a great time. We didn't get to do a whole lot. We spent a lot of time caring for Reed, but it was great to have a change of scenery and get out of the same old routine. We had a BBQ with my family on Saturday and Reed spent lots of time being passed around and admired. River had fun playing with Papa and getting treats from Grandma. On Sunday we were able to spend some alone time with River. We took him to breakfast and then spent some time on the beach. He has so much fun on the beach and I could tell he was eating up the individual attention.

Long Overdue Update

Reed has made it into the world and is now 6 weeks old. My labor was induced 7/13 at around 7: am and Reed was here just before 12:00 pm. It all went very quick. I hardly pushed and he was ready to meet us. I actually had to wait (no pushing) for the Doctor to get in to deliver him. Brian said it was only a couple of minutes but to me it felt much longer. I had an epidural but still felt quite a bit. Once it was all over I felt NO pain!! I am lucky. I did get sick to my stomach from the epidural and I was so tired. River stayed with my Mom and Dad and they brought him to meet his new brother. He liked him right away and wanted to hold and carry him. When it was time for him to leave he left happily with Grandma and Grandpa.

I have to admit the first 2 weeks were rough!!! I had lots of help adjusting to having 2 kids from Brian and my family. Brian stayed home a couple days. My sister took me to our first pediatrician apt. My Mom and Dad came up and Brian took River to work an afternoon or morning here and there. I had been sick with a bad cold before delivering and was just so tired. Reed cried alot. I was breast feeding and he seemed to want to eat all day, like every 20 min for over an hour at a time. Turns out he was not getting enough milk. At his 2 week check he had not regained his birth weight. He started getting formula and was really a different, happy, relaxed little guy. However that was the begining of the end for breastfeeding. I never could make enough milk no matter how I tried and Reed stopped sucking hard enough. We made it for a solid 5 weeks with what I had.

For Reed's third week of life we had a visit from Papa Jim. We all had a nice time. Papa Jim spent lots of time holding baby and playing "ruff and tuff" with River. I think Reed spent all his sleeping moments on Papa's chest! We got out to see some of the local sights like Tumwater Falls Park and Percival Landing. We had a nice breakfast at Budd Bay Cafe. We even made it to both Mt Rainier and Lake Cushman, with our trip to MT Rianier being the highlight. We miss Papa Jim and wish that he lived close by so he could drop in and visit more often.

Since then we have been slowly getting back to life as normal. River LOVES being a big brother. He wants to squeeze Reed's hands and feet out of love but I have to keep him from being to rough. He also loves to rest his head on his brother as a way of hugging. Again I have to prevent him from "hugging" to hard. I think it is a bit hard for him to understand. He has been a bit defiant but I can not tell if it is because he is adjusting to having a sibling or he is just three. In the midst of it all he now rides his bike without training wheels!! Brian had raised them up a few months back and decided to just take them off before he leaves for Iraq. He is so proud of himself now. Reed is starting to really show some personality. He smiles big smiles at us and he coos, goos and gaga's a little more everyday. He is starting to fall into a bit of a pattern for sleeping and eating making it easier for me to develop a routine for all of us. It was a bit of a rough start but I am really starting to enjoy being a Mom of 2, in fact I wouldn't mind having another at some point.

River's Birthday

River had his third birthday April 1st. We had a small family party with just Grandparent's and Aunt, Uncle and Cousins. We had a pinata with candy and stickers and everyone got River great gifts. He was so excited to have his party and played so hard with his cousins. He waited patiently to eat his cake and blew out the candles before we even started singing Happy Birthday. He had a great day. Our baby is definitely a little boy now. He is still as cute as ever and getting even cuter!

It snowed again yesterday morning. It was was coming down hard. It was sticking but also melting at the same time. It is now 9 am and 36 degrees outside. I think that I have convinced myself that summer is just a fantasy.

ARGH!!!

The last 2 days we have woke up to snow. It melts off everyday. Record cold. The daffodils and Lily's are trying to come up. I am tired of cold and am ready for Spring. Enough already!

It's a Boy!

I had my ultrasound on Wednesday. Brian went with me. Our little guy looks great and is developing well. He was about 11 oz. Average is anywhere from 10 -12 oz. The technician was trying to keep us in suspense for as long as possible but while we were looking at a side view his penis just plopped down and it was obvious to us all that it was a boy. We would have been happy with a healthy baby of any sex but we were also hoping for a boy. Today I am now 20 weeks and 1 day along. I have been able to feel baby move since about 16 weeks but the last 2 weeks the movements have been much stronger and consistent. I feel him move everyday. Very reassuring. After finding out the sex I became obsessed with deciding on a name. We had the name Darby in mind for either but it just didn't seem right to us anymore. After thinking on it over the weekend we have decided on REED ALEXANDER FIELDS. Now we just have to get ready for his arrival. Can't wait to meet our new little guy.