Spring Break Fun

This will be a brief update since time seems to be so limited these days! Spring break was a great time for us this year especially since Zach didn't travel to NY and instead got to stay with us! We started out the week by going to opening day for the Rockies! Last year Avery came to the game and this year it was the boys...and mom. So Blake, Zach and Dad spent the day watching the Rockies game on a beautiful day.

Bath Time

Blake had his first tub bath this week. His cord came off and it was finally time to get him nice and clean and to try out his new tub...Thanks Becky! I guess he liked it...he was peaceful and it put him right to sleep, that is until he had to get out. But even after he got out, he was happy to be snuggled in his cozy new hippo towel! Thanks again Becky!

Thanks Mom!

Thank you to my mom for everything. She was so instrumental in keeping my family and home in tact after Blake. She and Avery grew very attached and for a while Avery wouldn't even come to me. She is a wonderful Grandma to all the grandkids and I know that they love her very much!!! Thank you MOM!

Blake has Arrived!

I know many of you have been waiting for some pictures of Blake but honestly we didn't have a bunch of great shots right after the birth. Here he is though and I will post some more shots. I think my brain is starting to function half way normal for a sleep deprived mom of 2 kids under 2! Here is Blakes little photo gallery!

I woke up on Thursday morning around 6:30 which for those of you who know me well, I don't do mornings. I had been dreaming all night that I was in labor and being at book club the night before the girls from book club were in my dream and were so excited because I was going to have the baby. At 6;30 my contractions were about 30 minutes apart and by the time I took Zach to the bus stop at 8:45 they were about 15 minutes apart and by 9:45 they were 10 minutes apart. By then Andrew decided he should come home and we should go to the hospital. I stopped by the Dr.'s office at 11am and they told me to go ahead and check in at the hospital because I was already 5 1/2 cm dialated. Once I checked into the hospital I thought that I might try to make it through labor sans an epidural since so far it seemed to be going pretty quickly, however, since I had to be on antibiotics for at least 4 hours prior to delivery they wouldn't break my water or give me pitocin...that made me change my mind pretty quickly and I said to bring on the epidural! So I had the zero drug experience from 11:30 till 1:30! At 5:50 they decided to break my water since I was at 91/2 cm and ready to deliver. After about 5 pushes Blake was born at 6:01 pm. He was perfect and beautiful. He was 7lbs and 11oz and 20 1/4 " in length. The funny thing was that I was asking to be induced on Thursday when I had been in the Dr. office on Tuesday and they said that it was too early for an elective induction and the earliest that I could be induced was on Valentines Day! They also had said that the baby seemed a little small but considering he was 10 days early...he was a perfect size! We stayed in the hospital until the following evening and then I was ready to be in my own home. We have been so blessed!

Our Book Club

My mom was in town for a month so that she made sure she was here for Blake's birth. She had gone to Virginia for an orientation with their new employer from the 5th -7th and luckily Blake waited until her and my dad made it back into town. The evening of the 7th was our monthly book club night. My mom is an honorary member since she was here for our November and December meetings. Alissa and I started a book club in September and it has really taken on a life of it's own. Each time we have met I hadn't had my camera but this time I had one of the girls send me some photos of the evening. Enjoy...our book for month was the love letters from Ronald Reagan to Nancy...so the obvious theme for February was love! A special thank you to Crystal & Lori for coordinating the dessert and the favors for the month. The dessert was divine. Look at how beautiful the table was decorated. I don't know if it was all the love talk or the dessert or the back and shoulder massage that Kelly gave me but that evening I started having contractions.

I also included a photo of our December book club meeting also. The neighbors in the club have made it so fun! I am really glad we started the club.

Baby shower for Blake!

Here are some photos of the shower that was hosted by my dear friend Alissa. It was so kind and the result was beautiful. The shower was on January 27th just a week and a half before Blake was born. The girls who attended were mostly from the neighborhood with the exception of my mom and my Aunt Joan who lives in Denver and drove in for the occasion. Thank you Alissa!

As for the kids, they have managed to keep themselves happy despite 7 weeks of snow in a row. They get along so well, we are very lucky. They are constantly wrestling and loving on each other. She loves to follow Zach everywhere and play with his toys. Zach is patient even when she runs away with his favorite stuff and won't give it back. He is teaching her how to box too. It will be interesting to see how our family dynamics change once Blake has arrived. For now, see how great they play together!

The tile in the bathroom has gone in and only needs to be grouted-thanks to Lance, one of the guys who works with Andrew. We still have to tile the shower but that should be completed this week. Lance was such a cheery helper! Thanks!

With the basement almost done...we can finally see the end in sight. I know that Andrew is tired of it but I also know that once it is done there will be a sense of pride for everyone who helped in making it happen...my dad, brother Isaiah, Andrew, Joe, Alex, Lance...and of course I am excited to move stuff into the basement for all the finishing touches. Once it is done there will definitely be pictures!

Flooring was next and we put down a laminate wood in the main area of the basement. Our neighbor and friend Joe helped Andrew with this task since he had done it before. They got most of the flooring put down in one Saturday. Then our other neighbor and friend Alex helped on the second day and they were able to finish. It looks so good!

Next on the list was painting. After looking at 50 or so shades of beige, I finally picked one and Andrew went on painting duty. The picture isn't very good because of all the paint and fumes that were in the air...the camera picked up on all of it, but here is Andrew decked out in full painting gear.

The basement has really come along in the last couple of weeks. After my dad left town, we took a breather and started back up. Check out the latest pictures. We decided to hire someone to do the drywall for us and we are very glad that we did. They did a nice job and they did it much faster than we could have.

I know we haven't posted in a while but with Blake's impending arrival I have been a bit preoccupied with getting ready. I promise there will be more to come soon. We have 2 weeks until he is due but I believe that he will be here in the next week. I have been feeling well but definitely in a nesting phase. We are almost done in the basement and Avery has been moved to a new room so that Blake will be closer to mom and dad. I have pictures of everything, so I will update hopefully in the next 3 days. I promise!!!! If I haven't will someone hold me too it??