Bye bye grammy!

For some reason I wasn't able to figure out how to slide my pictures down, so you will get to see those before you read about what we have been up to :)

Abby and my mom connected and bonded this past week so much! Abby responds well to her name and has smiled a few times for grammy. My mom is awesome at changing poopy diapers -something that both Abby and I appreciate!

AJ loves to throw rocks into the pool! Between the rocks and Maggie laying in the water, it gets pretty dirty by the end of the day! AJ loved the water park at the zoo when we went on Monday!

Here is grammy and AJ hanging out in the backyard. They were deep in conversation when I interrupted them for a picture. Here is our father's day picture - pictured below is Adam, AJ and Abby, "papa" (Gordy Giles) and great-grandma Giles.

Great-grandma Giles enjoyed holding Abby when we were visiting Adam's dad for father's day.

Abby started crying and AJ ran over and said "it's okay Abby"... I was so glad I had my camera handy!

Abby is such a snuggler - I love it!!!

Here is AJ just "chillin" by the pool with grammy.

AJ loves to balance on the border at the park. He is very coordinated!

I love her smiles - and especially when she laughs. Isn't she cute?

My mom bought this ridiculous hat for Abby - and it has matching "shoes/socks" too :) Poor thing was a great sport!

I can't tell what color Abby's eyes are going to be. Right now they are very similar to AJ's when he was born - a bright blue in the middle and a little darker around the outsides. I swore the other day they were turning brown, but now I am not so sure.

I am so blessed to have had my mother visit and help out this entire past week. I don't know what I have done without her (and am not quite sure what I will do without her starting tomorrow!). She has helped me in so many ways, I am forever grateful to her. The most helpful thing my mom has done over this past week has been to spend countless hours with AJ outside and to continue to help him adjust to our beautiful addition to our family. AJ had a bit of a difficult start to the week, getting a few extra time outs than normal and always wanting to be on my lap, especially if Abby is nursing (which continues to be very frequently - she nurses for about forty minutes at a time about every two hours now). By the end of this week he has almost completely stopped whining and only got one time out today so far, and none the past two days.

This week has physically been much more difficult for me. I ended up getting mastitus (spelling?) on Wednesday in the middle of the night, and was in much pain most of Thursday, although I did start to feel better by Friday. I also realized I threw out my hips during labor and needed to start seeing a chiropractor. My back is getting better, but I feel like an old lady hobbling around! Again, thank the Lord for my mom being here - the timing couldn't have been better. She watched AJ while I went to the dr.'s, to get my prescription and to the chiropractor. She even brought me my meds and water throughout the day!

We have spent a lot of time trying to arrange our toys in the back so AJ can be content with staying just back there instead of venturing to the park for our outings, and that has been a huge success! AJ loves to sit by the kiddie pool with his feet in the water, and especially likes to slide into the pool from his little slide. He is awesome at watering my flowers - which is very helpful since my hands are usually full :) He continues to do a wonderful job with Abby - he is so gentle with her and recently has been really wanting to hold and carry her. I have let him hold her, and you can just tell how proud he feels when she is in his arms.

It will be interesting how this next week goes with flying solo, but I am sure things will be fine once we take the plunge and just go for it :) Here are a few pictures from this week. I tried to have a little photo shoot for Abby today to get a picture for her announcements, but none were "just right", so I will need to try again another day :) Enjoy!

updates

Thank you for those of you sharing in prayer for Adam's cousin and his wife. Their names are Guy and Debbie, and they are incredible parents and people. I can't imagine how they must be feeling now, and I pray that I never know, but I do continue to ask for your prayers and support for this family. The wake will be tomorrow night and the funeral is Friday.

I hope to post more in the next few days about AJ and Abby. AJ has just done wonderful with his little sister, and I swear she is genuinely smiling now, although I could be wrong. She has laughed a few times while nursing, and I get so excited to see her do that as a reaction to being happy with something we do. She has dimples too! I will write more on this all later, but I wanted to share the updates from my previous post.

God bless!

Prayers Needed

This morning Adam and I got very sad news. Adam's mom called saying that his cousin and his cousin's wife went into their 3 month old daughter's room to find her passed away in the crib. They don't have answers at this point as to why or how this terrible tragedy happened, but I ask for your prayers right now for them. Adam's mom also said that they were bringing their two year old to the hospital this morning as she has been "sick" for a few days and they were concerned that possibly it was something contageous. I will keep you all posted as I learn of more details, but in the meantime, I ask for your prayers and thoughts for this wonderful family.

Little Miss Piggy and Super Brother

Little Abby has been more than the perfect baby, and AJ has been more than the perfect big brother and son. I couldn't be more proud as a mother than I am at this very moment. Abby's weight went down to 7 lb 12 ounces by the time we were discharged at the hospital on Wednesday (I couldn't stand being away from AJ, so decided to go a sleepless night without the aid of the nurses watching her at night so I could be there to lay him down and be there when he woke up the next morning). Well, at her appointment yesterday she was already up to 8 lb 3 oz, so to help you with the math, she gained at least 7 ounces in 36 hours! This is due to the fact that my beautiful little girl likes to nurse, and has been doing so almost every 45 minutes to hour! This, in addition to the fact that she starts snorting and grunting like a pig every timeshe gets hungry is why I affectionately refer to her as "Miss Piggy". Nursing is finally starting to not be as painful as it was a day ago, but I have a feeling it will be another week before it gets much better. Little stinker goes through about twenty daipers a day right now! She had 10 poopy diapers yesterday in addition to wet ones! I recorded every time I nursed her and every time I changed her for about 24 hours, then I finally gave up since I have no worries about her being a healthy and growing child.

I absolutely love seeing her smile. I don't mind that it is only when she poops or makes gas right now, it is just a window into the very near future. It amazes me how much I forgot about what babies do - especially since it was just barely two years ago I sat with my six or seven baby manuals listing all the milestones and things to watch as a parent. Good thing there are tons of websites with up to date information that gets emailed to me! I also pulled out a few of the books to read while nursing in the middle of the night - although hopefully that won't last too long! :)

AJ has just amazed me with how well he has handled this total life adjustment. It has been wonderful having Adam home this week, and I am glad that he will stay home with me through Monday ( a full week). My mom stayed with us until yesterday, and will return again on Tuesday. It pretty much took three adults to handle the two kids and keep up with household duties. This makes me a little nervous about what is to come on my own - anybody want to move in and help out this summer? :)

As good as AJ has handled this adjustment, I have noticed a definite increase in his whining and just seeming a little sad. He loves her and is constantly saying hi to her and gently touching her, which is awesome, but when I can't do things like play with him or read twenty stories before bed, he just cries "mama" or "play with me". I think I have probably cried more about this than he has, and know that it comes with the territory of having more than one child. I also realize how in a few weeks it will start to be easier to do things with both children, especially as I learn how to be there with him and Abby in a manageable way. I am so excited to watch them grow together and to be there for one another as they get older, and I feel so blessed for everything God has provided and made possible for us.

I tried to take AJ to the park near our house on Wednesday to help him see that things were going to be as close to normal as possible, and fortunately Adam volunteered to join us because I got super lightheaded and needed to sit down the whole time we were there (this was about 36 hours after I delivered Abby, so I don't recommend doing this to any second-time mommies!). Now I am feeling much better, and was able to take him to the park today by myself (although Adam met me there with a screaming baby as Abby wanted to nurse 25 minutes after I had just nursed her!). He has been playing a TON outside, and even caught his first fish with Adam and my mom the other night (I need to upload the picture from my parents camera, but it was a walleye for those of you who like to fish!). AJ helped reel it in and I think he touched it once it was off the hook. Adam got him his own pole now, so I am sure there will be many fishing adventures.

I apologize now for all the pictures I am about to share. I just couldn't narrow it down any further! Here are some more updated shots of Abby...

I think Abby was begging me to not take any more pictures here :)

Smiling away :)The car ride home. We used the same car seat as AJ used, but added a little pink to it :)Poor kid saw nothing but flash hundreds of times these past few days :)My sleeping beauty!

I think Abby enjoyed stretching out on her blanket!Our first bath was a success! Barely any tears!I should start looking into modeling companies I think - what do you think?This picture melts my heart. AJ wanted to give Abby a kiss, and he was so gentle with her while he did it!This is a picture Adam took to show his model airplane friends. He was showing off his two babies!Just hanging out :)

Playing in the swing...


All snuggled in warm and cozy!

Here are some recent pictures of AJ just hanging out. No big outings this week, but we are all definitely appreciative of this beautiful weather!

Here is AJ going down the slide at the park with me earlier today. He likes to climb up the ladder, which just about gives me a heart attack every time, but he has never fallen and seems very sure-footed.

AJ thought it was hysterical to put the boat in the pool. He kept talking about how it was like the boat in the lake (which he refers to as "his lake") where they went fishing the other day. AJ loves his train table! He grabbed both Adam's and my hand that night and said "play trains me". So, how could we say no? Besides, it IS fun :)AJ initiated this hug, and I was thankful I had the camera. They were in the middle of getting shoes on to go outside.This is the adorable smile just before the argument that No, we cannot go "way up high" and stand in the water table.

Here are a few pictures taken of AJ when he was just less than one week old... I think there are lots of similarities, but definitely some differences!

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Introducing Abigail Rose Giles!

At 12:35 this morning our beautiful little girl, Abigail Rose (Abby) was born. She weighs 8 pounds 5 ounces and is 20 inches long.

After being three days overdue, my dr. allowed me to come in to the hospital yesterday so I could try a "cervical softener". The plan was not to induce labor, but to help move things along. I was then going to be scheduled for an induction on Wednesday morning (originally it was Tuesday, but since there was no progress, he wanted to wait one more day and let things "happen naturally".

So, we came in at 2:30 and around 9:30 were planning on leaving the hospital for the evening. When we looked at the monitor, Abby's heartrate was a bit sporatic (it went from the mid sixties, which is low, to the high 160's). The nurse and doctor decided to keep us here for monitoring a few more hours, so that was our plan. Then I started to have some contractions around 10:30, and they were starting to get regular (and painful). The plan was then for me to stay the night. Things then moved very quickly. At 11:50 they checked me and I was dilate between a 2 and a 3. Contractions were regular by this point, so they decided that I could stay, and I asked for an epidural (since I knew that the anisthesiologist needed to drive here, and I wanted to have it when I was dilated to a 4). At 12:15 I started to feel horrible and almost like I needed to push. 12:30 my dr. arrived and 12:35 she was born. There was no time for any drugs other than the tylenol I had an hour before, or to discuss anything. It was such an amazing process, and I am so beyond blessed to have everything work out okay and to have her so healthy. The doctor and nurses (and my husband/coach) kept directing me not to push, but there was no stopping her coming. The nurse read me what was written in the log for her birth, that there was a "grunt and the baby came flying out". The cord was around her neck once, but it didn't seem to phase her at all. She was nursing after about ten minutes of being born, and has been just perfect.

We were so fortunate to have my family staying at our house yesterday as they followed my copius list of directions and kept AJ on his routine. He did a beautiful job this morning meeting Abby, and even "bought" her a Dora doll and gave it to her (which is a true gift as he is obsessed with Dora lately). He enjoyed eating the icing off of her birthday cake (which the hospital provides), and we all sang happy birthday to her first. AJ had a bit of a difficult day yesterday when he realized Adam and I had left (we left during his nap), but did a wonderful job playing with my family, bath time, and reading books. My mom tried putting on a pair of his pajamas last night that he didn't like, and he informed her that they needed to go in the garbage can. When she tucked him in last night she said "do you want to talk"? AJ responded with "no talk" so she started to leave the room. He then changed his mind and said "more talk," so of course the two shared some more stories of his day and talked about trucks. I missed him yesterday so much, and continue to miss him tons, but I am grateful for this time to adjust to nursing again and to get some sleep and relax before we start our daily routine, whatever that will look like.

I better get back to my sweet little baby. I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Tender Moments

So, hormones are starting (or ending?) to get the best of me. I am SO in love with my sweet little AJ, I can barely stand it. We took over an hour doing our bedtime routine tonight, savoring all the play and cuddling in his room, then in my bed, then again in the rocking chair. After dozens of books, songs, and snuggles, he did end up going to sleep without a complaint, but it was during that process some sweet moments happened.

In bed we were playing with his teddy bear and the covers. At one point he was resting his head on "his" pillow (aka, Adam's pillow), and I was resting my head on my pillow. He smiled so sweetly at me, then said "kiss mama, mouth" and reached over, grabbed my head, and planted a sweet wet one on my mouth (mouth closed :)).

Then I was rocking him about twenty minutes later and he was telling me about his last day of daycare for the month. He said that Sara hurt his hand (she is a cute little girl at daycare, and I wasn't worried about this)... So, as always, I tried to get more out of our conversation. I asked him what happened, and he said, "Sara, time out". I asked him how that made him feel, and he said, "Sad. Cry". I then asked AJ what makes him happy, and he says, "mamma, daddy, happy". I said, do mamma and daddy make you happy, and he said, "Yes". He then said, "Like Mamma and daddy". I couldn't believe how sweet that was, and completely unprompted. I clarified by saying, "You like mamma and daddy?" and he said "yes". That is when my tears started, and part of why the little blessing got an extra long bedtime routine. Thank you God for my daily blessing you have given us, and for the blessing we are so excited to meet!

Less than 10 days to go and counting!

At my appointment on Friday I was sad to hear that there has been no progress in the past three weeks for little Abby's arrival. I am 1 cm dilated right now and my cervix is "softening," but no number was given. She is at a stage -1 and is still head down. I have been super uncomfortable, however, the good news is that if I do not go by my due date on the 13th of June, my dr. will induce me on the 16th. Finally - the light at the end of the tunnel! It is a comfort to know that Abby is doing well and will be a good size and healthy baby! I am so blessed to have this quality time with AJ and we have events planned every day until the arrival of Abby. I finished work last Thursday, so I am enjoying this quiet time during his nap and playing with my brilliant and handsome little man when he is awake.

Adam, AJ and I went to the zoo and dog park last weekend. It was a full day, but lots of fun! AJ loved feeding the goats, riding the tractor, and splashing water. The highlight at the dog park was when we found a caterpillar and we put it on Adam and his arm. Super exciting!

I took a few pictures of Abby and AJ's rooms since I finally finished her room, and as a result, AJ's room is all in one piece (now that the crib and changing table have been out of there for about a month). Here they are!

We recently had AJ's two year pictures taken. Here are a few of my favorites!