I'm so lucky.

Every morning sometime after Dallin has politely knocked upon his door to be let out, I hear noises coming from Tristan's room. I am sure he talks so quietly so that he does not bring his brother to his room, just Mommy. I am so lucky though to have something like this to go look at every morning.

"Come here Mommy, I have missed you all night long, I was a good boy and slept all night just for you and now come pick me up!"

"Oh, Mommy, while I was in here all alone all night long I think I made a stinky."

"Come just a bit close Mommy, I want to show you something!"

"I LOVE YOU MOMMY! I am SO happy to see you!"

Tristan is one of the best babies ever. He wakes up on his own and talks to himself, or me in this case, until I come in and get him. When I do finally get into his room he has lots of big smiles for me in the mornings. It helps start my day out right, reminding me why I love to be a mommy.

Moods

Have you ever noticed how one thing can just shatter your good mood for the rest of the day? Yesterday it was when Chris and I were talking and I was telling him my genius idea for a Christmas present for Jonathon and Lauren and he said he didn't like the idea completely because he felt we shouldn't dictate what they do... Not that I would be dictating or anything, just a helpful guide if they needed a last minute idea. I can't say more since I still think I am going to do that for their Christmas present and if they happen to follow my blog I don't want them to know! Anyway, after that minor disagreement my mood was shot for the rest of the evening. I couldn't come up and be happy. I kept getting irritated by the smallest things and was not all that nice to my husband. The sad thing is that I want him around because it makes me feel better but I just don't want to interact with him because I am sure there is something he will do or say that will bug me.

Today the same thing happened. I was happy, I went outside today and played in the snow, the boys were good all day and I was in a good mood. Then Dallin threw a mirror we have for babies because it can stand on its own so baby can stare into it (Dallin loved it when he was itsy bitsy) and he threw it against a wall and broke the mirror! Of course I became agitated because I didn't want Dallin grabbing the broken glass or getting too close to the few small pieces that needed to be vacuumed. But I was reprimanded by Chris who told me that I was being too harsh. I don't feel I was but he apparently did. And that shot my mood for the evening. We were even going to work in our bedroom, painting it tonight but I am not in a mood that Chris wants to work with me. I agree... We wouldn't be very nice to each other but at the same time he has been putting of working on our room all week and so we still sleep in the living room...

I don't know what is going on. Those are just two experiences in the last two days but this has been going on the last 4 or 5 days. I think I am becoming a girl again and there fore am really moody but I don't ever remember being this bad. Then again, last time I actually was a "regular girl" (thats what we call it here in our house) was August of 2008. Its hard to remember back that far. I do hope that is the reason for all my foul moods and that it will go away and I can be happy again and nice to my husband and kids...

Dallin's second hair cut!

I decided that last night Chris and Dallin needed hair cuts. Chris's was getting long and over his ears and just didn't look good for work, not that there is a strict dress code there or anything but he still likes to look nice. And Dallin just had long hair. The hair on the top of his head was almost reaching the bottom of his hair line in the back so it was time for a drastic hair cut. I was very nervous about it because when I got my hair cut there was a little boy who kept screaming and moving way too much and didn't get a very good cut and was almost skewered with the scissors a couple of times. I was afraid that would be Dallin as well.


This is a good picture of Dallin from earlier in the day. I decided I should try to have a before and after picture.

This is the first picture of Dallin getting his hair cut. I decided to use the razor I got for Christmas a few years back. I will admit that I was not very appreciative of it when I got it because I didn't want to cut hair but it has come in handy and since I got it I have been the only person to cut Chris's hair. And now I will be the only one to cut Dallin's hair.



As you can see there was no screaming and fidgeting. Dallin thought it was so much fun and that it tickled him as I was doing the back of his head.


He kept leaning forward, trying to get away from me because I was tickling him. So cute!


For the top of his head I used scissors to make it look nice and blended from the buzzed part to the scissored part. He did so well and this was him right after he got off the stool. He went straight for my spray bottle.


This is all of his hair. He had so much. I can't believe he is so grown up now and getting hair cuts!


Since it was Saturday night I had both boys take a bath, granted, Dallin needed one since his hairs were cut but I have started holding Tristan in the tub with Dallin when he is in there because Tristan can use a good soaking once in a while. Plus, his little baby tub doesn't allow him to be as submersed as holding him in the tub does and so he gets cold. I didn't get to see what his hair finally ended up like because right after the tub he went to bed with his hair wet.


This morning we decided to not go to church since Dallin and I keep coughing and don't feel so well and Chris said that his tummy has a rumbly in a bad way. But I woke up this morning with Dallin on top of me and woah was he lookin' different!


He is very cute though and even though he isn't feeling well he is still doing okay and let me get some cute pictures of him.

A Beautiful Fall Day

Today after we got up and ready for the day I noticed it was beautiful outside and that in the sun it was pretty warm. We went out and tossed a frisbee around, me and Dallin. He was so cute. We had two frisbees and I would throw them and I would get one and he would get the other and run to me and I would throw them both. It was fun. Then Chris came out after his little cub scout planning meeting and we raked some leaves and took some pictures and videos. Our video camera was FULL for the last month and we finally took all the videos off and so we started to tape again.


Everyone needs family pictures so we took one and we look wonderful! Granted, you can't really see Tristan in it because he is washed out but he is there!


Dallin loved walking around our yard with us. He loves to be outside and it is just so hard to get out sometimes with Tristan now. Dallin and I usually go out when he is asleep and take the baby monitor but today we took him out!


Chris and Dallin. I love his face. He looks so unhappy but I think it is just the sun in his eyes.


Here is Tristan all bundled up in his little fleece sleeper thingy and the hat Dallin got from the hospital when he was born. He was nice and warm and eventually he even fell asleep in the stroller.

Isn't this like the best picture of Dallin ever? I think it is. He looks happy to be sitting in the leaves.


Dallin let me throw the leaves on him and he thought it was fun but he wouldn't throw them.


Chris even mowed the lawn today! It needed it at least one last time and it was also good because I am going to start a compost pile so he chopped up the piles of leaves pretty good so that I could rake them up and make a good pile to start composting!


And guess who got to ride on the mower with Daddy? Dallin! He had so much fun and when Chris got to the front yard when he was almost done, Chris brought Dallin into the house which was really funny because Dallin had fallen asleep while Chris was mowing! He was so mad when Chris brought him in and wanted to go back out. But instead I got him lunch and put him to bed!

It was so nice outside and I am really glad we were able to go and spend some time outside before it gets too cold to go outside without a coat on. Though Dallin needs a coat and if you notice on the lawn mower Chris had put socks on his hands to keep them warm because they were so cold. Ahhh it was very nice to play as a family outside.

Its about time

For the first time since June, Chris and I were able to go out on a long 5 hour date... I helped Peggy two weeks ago and she said she owed us one and so I said she could watch Dallin sometime for a night and we would be even. So Peggy said that she would take him last night. We really liked that idea because we don't get Dallin-free nights and more importantly, Dallin-free mornings very often!
We wound up asking Peggy to take Tristan for a few hours too. Due to the fact that my milk is drying up again and he is becoming a mostly bottle fed baby, we could be away from him for a few hours. I will admit, I felt guilty leaving him behind because I haven't ever left Tristan with someone other than my mom or Chris and I NEVER would have left Dallin alone for so long at 2 months. Mostly because I would have needed to nurse him but still, I was very attached. The second child doesn't get nearly as much attention as the first I guess.

Anyway, it has been some time since Chris and I have been able to go to the temple and I decided that was what I wanted to do with our date time. It was a wonderful experience. We went and did initiatorys for the first time since we went for ourselves and it was a wonderful experience to hear those blessings that we receive at the temple. I really enjoyed it. I believe next time we will do sealings and that way we can have done everything at least once and then I think we are going to start going through for family.

It was a wonderful time, being child free and going to the temple, doing a service to others. I hope that we will be able to go to the temple regularly now that I am not stuck so closely to Tristan with nursing. I will miss nursing and the closeness that I feel to Tristan when I nurse but I will enjoy the opportunity to start going to the temple already!

Corn Maze

Chris and I wanted to do something fun as a family yesterday and so we decided to go to a corn maze! I have never been to one so I didn't know what to expect but we had a good time. It was very corny, the whole time! Tristan just slept in the front pack the whole time and Dallin was our fearless leader. And we braved the ravages of corn for a whole hour or so. I am glad that we were able to get out and do something fun since we really don't get out anymore.


Here we are just before with the maze in the background. And the map in my hand.

Chris and Dallin on their way down to the entrance.


At this point Chris started to film our adventures in the maze. He was ridiculous, saying the natives might get us and we would never survive. He was entertaining.


This is an areal view of the maze. It was pretty neat that they cut it out of the corn. I could always tell when we were in the N's but that was about it. It was lots of fun though. They had signs for us to read silly facts on but we didn't see all that many of them. If we walked the entire thing, even the dead ends it is 2 miles long.


This is how Tristan was the whole time. Sleeping!


Our little group. Since Chris was doing the camera the whole time Peggy carried Dallin and I had Tristan.


Dallin had picked up a corn stalk so that he could "kill his food" as Chris like to tell us. Or to defend himself from the natives.


Here we are on the outside of the maze! We were victorious. It was so nice to get out and do something with our family.

My baby boys

Well it has been almost a month since I posted last and I was bugging Becca about making a post so I guess I should also do one. We have been a little busy in the last month. Or I just haven't found or made the time to do a blog post.

One month ago yesterday Tristan joined our family and it has been so wonderful to have him around. I count my blessings every day. 1 - Chris 2 - Dallin 3 - Tristan. I have more blessings but those are the three biggest I think. Today I was sitting on the ground, next to Tristan (to protect him from his loving brother who doesn't understand to be gentle all the time) and Dallin was playing in the corner with his shapes. And they were just so happy and peaceful on their own at the time and I was able to take a moment and realize how much I truly love them both.

It has been a rough adjustment. I don't know why people have more than one child... Just kidding! I will admit that some days I have a rough time with the boys but in the end I love them oodles and I look forward to when they are older and we can all play together. But Dallin has been sick for the vast majority of Tristan's life so far which has made him a bit more dependent upon me than I had originally thought he would have when Tristan was born. It has made for some very long days and I love it when Chris gets home and I get some help. I would have a very hard time taking care of both boys all by myself all day long. You are amazing Jennifer. I know you do what you have to do but golly jeepers that would be hard.

Anyway, I wanted to post some pictures of us and the boys and let everyone see how much Dallin loves his little brother.


Dallin loves to hold Tristan and comes up to me and sits on the ground and grabs Tristan out of my lap. It is oh so cute.


You can see Chris stopping Dallin and his love from hurting Tristan. Dallin has recently learned how to kiss and so he kisses Tristan on his head and face all the time now and Chris didn't know what Dallin was trying to do because it was the first time he had seen Dallin try to kiss Tristan. Sooo cute!


I always look forward to when Dallin goes to bed and it is just me and Chris and Tristan. We had Dallin all by himself and so he got all our attention and so I like the evenings when we can give Tristan all our attention as well. We love him lots but now we have other things like our house and Dallin that take our attention away from him.


Chris likes to pace and carry Tristan around, which always makes him fall asleep. At this point Dallin was a spotted mess and we were trying so hard to keep Dallin away from Tristan but he wanted to be up with Chris and see Tristan so Chris got to carry both boys around for a while.


This was on the day or the day after we got home from the hospital. Tristan is wearing that outfit right now and when he stretches his legs he is pushing the limits of that sleeper. He is a tall boy! Skinny, but tall. But this was the first time Dallin got to hold Tristan and he has grown to love his brother so much. Every morning after I get Dallin out of his bed he goes immediately to my room and climbs on the side of the bassinet to see Tristan and any time Tristan cries Dallin is right there to see if he is okay. I hope that they are always good friends and I love them both so much and am so grateful for my family!

Tristan Finn

I wanted to get the labor and delivery story down before I forgot any more and so while Tristan is happy and fed and sleeping and Dallin and my mom are out, I am going to take a few minutes and type up what happened to us this last weekend. I am a wordy person though so I am sure it will be longer than I originally planned! And detailed too, to a point.

Saturday the 21st began as the last few Saturdays have. I woke up wishing I didn't have a huge belly that restricted my movements and Chris got up and got Dallin ready and then mowed the lawn. Because we knew Tristan would be coming soon we were trying to be motivated and get lots done. So after Chris had mowed the lawn we hung around the house a bit with my mom and Dallin and then Chris and I went and got Rogers truck so we could empty out our breezeway of trash and debris. Unfortunately Rogers truck was full so we had to take that to the dump and then we had to come home and get our trash and take that to the dump. It took a long time. I didn't help too much because Chris didn't want me to and I was okay with that because bending over and picking the trash up out of the bed of the truck would have been a lot for my back I think.

After we finished at the dump we went up to Lowes where we picked out the baseboard and molding and trim for Tristan's room. It still had to be textured but we didn't know when I would get back there so we figured it was a good idea to get it now while we didn't have Dallin and Tristan both. The whole process took forever. I was dying. My poor knees and feet were killing me after about 20 minutes of being there. But we had to walk up and down and compare prices and all that jazz. Every so often I would bend over because my belly was hurting. At the time I thought it was just the muscles but now I know that it was the start of labor!

When we finally got home from Lowes I was sitting down and relaxing but my poor belly was still hurting every so often. So about two hours later I decided that they were contractions and they were getting longer and closer. So my mom timed them for me and they were 6-8 minutes apart for about 30 seconds. Not anything to worry about. But since they didn't go away we decided we should get ready for the hospital, grab the car seat, finish packing our bag, get some food. We did all that and my mom and Dallin went to bed and I was uncomfortable but nothing that I couldn't handle.

We were expecting to go to the hospital that night but it never happened. We went up to bed so I could get some sleep while the contractions were still irregular and weak enough for me to sleep. I didn't get much sleep. They were strong enough that I couldn't sleep through them so I would doze for a few minutes and then wake up and then doze. It went that way all night and I would time them ever few hours but nothing.

In the morning (now Sunday the 22nd) we got up and got Dallin and my mom ready for church. My contractions were about 4-6 minutes apart for about 45 seconds and were really uncomfortable but not too painful yet. So we ate and sat around and sent my mom off to church. At about 10 I got in the shower and had the hot water on my belly which felt really nice and I was relaxing. We had called the midwife on call, which just happened to be my midwife that day! She said to take it easy and labor at home for a while but don't wait too long since we did have a 40 minute drive. So that was what we did. And I wasn't hurting all that much so it wasn't a problem.

At 10:45 though we started packing the car because even though my contractions weren't following the 5-1-1 rule, they were getting stronger. I knew it was going to be a long car ride. And it was. Just for fun I would sing and yell really loud during a contraction to help me focus on that. It was hurting by the time we got to the hospital but nothing some hand squeezing with Chris didn't fix.

We got to the hospital at about 11:55 and were in our delivery room by Noon and I was hooked up to monitors and stuck in a bed for 20 minutes upon arrival. The contractions weren't too bad though so I didn't mind doing the 20 minutes of monitoring. After my 20 minutes were up, Kay (my midwife) came in and checked me and we were all surprised to find out that I was already at 9 cm. I wasn't writhing in pain or anything like I thought I would be... But my water hadn't broken yet and she said it probably would soon and the baby wasn't quite down far enough to push but he would be ready when my water broke. So she said I could go labor any way I wanted to. I decided for another shower.

While in the shower my contractions started to get stronger but still 3-5 minutes apart I think and so I would suffer for a minute and have a few minutes to recoup and so Chris and I would talk and were generally enjoying ourselves. Chris was very sweet and helpful. He had his arms in the shower so he could hold my hand and rub my back when the contractions were going and would talk to me of silly things to keep me focused somewhere. It seemed to do the trick because I was still doing okay.

After about 30 minutes or so in the shower I got out and had to sign my consent form to be treated at the hospital and other fun things. So I did that and then laid in bed for a while and realized it was very uncomfortable to be laying so I was kneeling or on my side or on all fours, just trying to get comfortable. And lots of hand squeezing.



This is me at one point of lying in bed. A few times the contractions were strong enough that I needed a little bucket to throw up in but for the most part I was still doing okay. The nurse, Elayne, was very friendly and stayed with us the whole time and kept talking to us. She said that I was doing very well with my focus and that between contractions I didn't really act like I was in labor. I think that means I am awesome. We just kept plugging along, waiting for my water to break.

Probably around 2 is when my contractions started to pick up in strength a lot. As I said, we were waiting for my water to break but it was being very stubborn. So she said when I had a contraction to go ahead and bear down a little and that might help break it. During this time though my contractions really did pick up and I was squeezing saying to Chris "It hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts" and then I would lay there between saying I am so tired and start to close my eyes when another contraction would start.

At about 2:25 I said I wanted Kay to come in and break my water. I had been nervous about this because everyone says it is more painful to labor while your water is broken and so I was scared. I didn't want to hurt more. But I finally hit the point where I wanted it over and so I told my nurse to call Kay and break my water. So at 2:30 Kay came in and broke my water. When she did that she said that the baby was in position for pushing and I was all ready so I could roll over after it was broken and start to push. So that was what I did. I got caught up in some cords since they had to monitor Tristan after my water was broken but once I was kneeling against the back of the bed I started to push. My nurse had told me that it was going to hurt more and it was going to burn but its the one time in life to embrace that pain. So I waited for a contraction and pushed but nothing really happened and it was a wussy contraction anyway. The next one though was a good one so I started to push.

I don't know what was going on behind me since my face was in a pillow and I was squeezing Chris's hand really hard, focusing on that. Then I realized it was starting to hurt but I remembered what my nurse had said, to embrace it so I thought I want it over so I kept pushing. So that was the second contraction. And once I started to push with that contraction I just kept pushing and pushing. So as I said, I didn't know what was going on behind me but I am pretty sure that Kay hadn't expected things to go so fast. Because once I started to push she didn't have time to get all dressed up for delivery after breaking my water. She had gotten her smock on her arms and then Elayne said here he comes! So Kay ran over and caught Tristan's head, not having time to tie up her smock or put gloves on. I wonder how many babies get delivered without gloves... Anyway, so time of birth was 2:35 p.m. I only pushed for 3 minutes they said. It felt a lot shorter, mostly because I know I didn't take that many breaths during that time. But I think 3 minutes is pretty good.



So then I got to hold Tristan immediately and cut the cord because Chris was busy filming because the nurse told him to. haha. So they dried him off on my chest and put blankets on us and it was wonderful. When Dallin was born I got to touch his head and then 45 minutes later I got to hold him. I liked this much better, being able to hold Tristan immediately.

Once they did take him I got stitched up and a meal and he was weighed and measured. He was 9 pounds 3.4 ounces and 21 inches long. Chris was over with Tristan the whole time watching him get measured and weighed and cleaned and all the fun things they do to new babies. Tristan wound up having low blood sugar though so the nursery brought over some formula and Chris got to feed Tristan while I was recouping. I think he really enjoyed that.


He was all nice and pink after he was rubbed down and not crying at all once he was on my chest. He has so far been an amazing baby. He nurses really well, even though my milk still hasn't come in. He gets bottles as well because of that and he does so well nursing as well as bottle feeding. Though I do wish I could just nurse exclusively.


Tristan is a nice filled out baby in the face and his legs are so skinny. By the time we had left the hospital he weighed 8 lb 12 oz so he did good and the next day he weighed 8 lb 10oz so he is good at regulating his food, as well as his temperature since he is a bigger baby. Becca and Remi still beat us though!

Once we got to the recovery room we had to wait forever before Tristan was brought to us. They had to wait to take his blood sugar again and then after that a bath and then time after his bath so we didn't get Tristan back to us until like 3 hours after he was born. I was missing him.


Here is the proud Daddy! Chris has been so good with Tristan. He feels much more confidant in taking care of Dallin though. Probably because he isn't nearly so fragile.


Sitting in the horrible bed in the recovery room. I was so ready to go home. I was in pain from my stitches and my cramps were horrible and the bed was hot and made me sweat and I just wanted to be home.


To keep Tristan out of Dallins reach we put him on the table lots. We have a lot of work to do with Dallin regarding Tristan but for the most part Dallin has done really well. He quickly learned how to be "gentle". He pets Tristan's head and will play with his toes but he doesn't understand his strength so he will grab and squeeze and pull if we aren't watching. Lots to teach!


And here is the close up of the little guy. He is such a good baby so far. Very easy. He sleeps so well at night and eats so well and loves to be held but also does really well just sitting on his own. Granted he is crying next to me right now and I am about to pick him up but I wanted to get this post done first. Its been going on for a few hours.

We are so happy to have Tristan in our home. We also love having Dallin in our home. I can't do much with Dallin right now since I can't pick him up and so he has been becoming very attached to my mom but I hope that soon I will be healed so I can take care of Dallin and Tristan. I love them both and can't wait for the days when they are the best of friends, hopefully not the worst of friends very often. So much to look forward to.

Potty Training

So a while back I went to a consignment sale that I could get in early since I was a new mom. This meant I got the pick of the litter and I got a bunch of great clothes for Dallin at that time. And shoes. Aside from clothes though I got a potty training toilet for Dallin. We are thinking that if he acts like he is ready for it, at 18 months we will be starting to potty train Dallin. Having two babies in diapers isn't going to be all that much fun...


Dallin brings his potty out to where ever I am and pushes it around and tries to get me to help him sit on it.


Still carrying it around.


Trying to see his toy that he had dropped into the hole.


Doesn't my little boy look ready to be potty trained?

Bubbles!

I don't really have anything post worthy but it has been a while since I posted last so I thought I should go ahead and post something! We still aren't in our house yet but we will be this weekend! The installation of the HVAC is taking longer than we were originally told. I don't know why, it just is. But they have all the duc twork in and it really seems like the last little bit they have to do is put in the vent registers and the thermostats. So here is hoping for this weekend!

Even though we aren't in our house we do visit it often. And when we do, one of Dallin's favorite past times is to watch us blow bubbles. He likes to chase them too but he isn't all that great at running around on our lawn so he usually just sits and we blow bubbles to him. So here are some cute pictures of my baby boy, enjoying the bubbles we have at our house.







Look at that smile of pure delight. Some days when it is nice enough to actually be in the house, we do bubbles in the kitchen. But that usually only happens when we accidentally leave the bubble bottle out where Dallin can find it and he then brings it to us and waits somewhat patiently for us to open it and blow bubbles for him. It is so cute how he knows what is in the bottle and he can't wait for us to blow bubbles!

Then here is my cool little boy with Chris's sun glasses on him. Dallin never gets to play with glasses and when Dallin and I wait in the car for long periods of time, we try on Daddy's sun glasses. He has fun and he looks so cute. I mean cool...

Otherwise, not much is going on for us. We will be moving the rest of our stuff here at Peggy's to our house when the HVAC is all done. Probably not until Friday night though. Maybe Thursday. Then I can finally get settled in a bit more. Granted, Tristan's room is still in shambles but us actually being at the house will give us more time to work on it and I don't think it will take us too much longer! Here is hoping.