Adjusting

I am so glad I decided to download some pictures tonight. I needed to see this picture right at this moment.  This little boy looks so proud to be the big brother of this sweet baby.  He is so proud. He looks so sweet, and so grown up. He is.  Some big changes have come into his life in the past month, particularly starting first grade and being gone from school all day, every day, and getting a new baby brother, of which he is the biggest brother of.  He is such a good helper with Lincoln, and loves to hold him.  He is so good with him and so good at getting him to sleep.  He is very proud of that. :) He asks to hold him right before he leaves for school and as soon as he comes home.  And most of the time, it really is so helpful to me. I am so grateful for that.

On the other hand we have been having a rough time with Christian.  Mostly at bed time, and then all heck breaks loose.  Really, it's been rough and it's driving us over the edge.  I'm so frustrated and don't know what to do.

But this picture is so sweet.  And it reminds me that he is a little boy.  He is only six years old. And he's trying to figure out how to handle all the changes that have come his way.  And he is a good boy.  He is such a good boy.

Taking a few pictures of a one week old is not as simple as it sounds when there are three big brothers who want to be in the picture too. :)

Lincoln, One Week

Sunbathing

Sunbathing by the sliding glass door to get rid of some jaundice.

He loved it!

Big Brother Ethan

This big brother had to get in one last snuggle with his little Lincoln before heading off to church.

Ethan is such a sweet brother, always checking on Lincoln, giving him kisses, and holding him.

And then later that day I found Lincoln sleeping like this, with Ethan's new necklace he had won at the ward carnival the night before.  He loves to share!

Reading Time

I think we might survive...

Ethan holds the baby and Christian reads books to them. 

Everyone is happy.

Going Home

Two Days Old

Ready to go home!

Proof that he did take a binky....hopefully he'll be convinced again! :)

 I started snapping pictures while we waited for Jake to come pick us up.:)

He has the longest little toes!

When we got home we were welcomed with some fun decorations the boys had put up with Grammy!

 They made this cute sign and hung it on the door:

 And I loved these little hand and footprints on the window!  They are still up because I think they are so sweet!

 And of course, we came home to some very anxious brothers, wanting to hold and love their new baby Lincoln!

Mommy and Lincoln

My Grandma said, "I bet he smells like heaven!"

She is absolutely right.

Lincoln Meets his Big Brothers

August 8:

These guys were my favorite visitors.

It was so fun to see their reactions when they met their new baby brother for the first time.
A sweet moment I will never forget.
They came when Lincoln was just four hours old.
I love their facial expressions in all of these.

Unfortunately Lincoln was screaming mad when they walked in the door, so they were a bit nervous at first. But then he calmed down.

Christian came over and put his arms under Lincoln like he wanted to just scoop him up.

Ethan kept touching him and rubbing his head.

Owen climbed on the bed to get a closer look. The baby! He kept saying.

And they all love to hold him.

Until they are done, which doesn't take long.

But then they want to hold him again. And again.

Owen has had a bit of a rough time, mostly because he just can't understand why mom can't come home! He was very upset the first night when they left the hospital without me. And when I explained today that I was going to sleep in this bed tonight and then come home tomorrow he looked at me and said, so matter-of-fact, Nope! Mommy put me to bed. But Jake said tonight was much better. It's so good for the boys to depend on Daddy.

I think Ethan loves little Lincoln the most, constantly asking me to get him out of his bassinet to hold him, begging to come to the hospital to see baby Lincoln (and while they are at the zoo!) and then beaming with pride that he can hold him all by himself. He is one proud big brother! And all grown up to me now.

Christian has fallen into the role of biggest brother, and if I can praise him and encourage him and let him know what a good helper he can be with baby Lincoln, just maybe it will come to pass. Because he really can be a great helper if he chooses to!

A few more pics from their second visit to the hospital:

Oh how i love to see that tiny baby in Jake's hands!

First family photo!

Baby Lincoln's Arrival

Lincoln's arrival into this world was quick and not too eventful, which is always a good thing!

I was scheduled to be induced that morning sometime. Everyone woke up early, so we were fed and dressed and just waiting for the phone to ring to tell us it was time to go! The boys were very anxious! We went on a walk around the block to kill some time, shot hoops, and then wrestled with Daddy. Still no phone call, so we decided to head to the zoo to pick up our new membership cards that I had to get with my ID. We got halfway to the zoo and the hospital called! Hooray! But Jake wasn't changing his plan, so we still went to the zoo, got the cards, dropped the boys off at Grammy's house, and then headed to the hospital and got there just after 10 am.

By about 11 all the paper work and such was done and I was ready to be started. The nurse checked me first, and I was already dilated to a four, which was good. Dr. Lloyd came down and broke my water, and they started me on the pitocin. By about one 1:00 the contractions were getting pretty strong and uncomfortable and about 3 minutes apart. Dr. Lloyd checked me again and I was only a five so I decided to get the epidural. But it was awful! When he was putting it in it sent this horrible electric shock down my leg and made me jump! And then it did it again. It was the worst feeling! But then it was in and I thought all was good. Except that it didn't kick in fast enough. :)

Once my epidural was in it was about 1:30. The nurse checked me and I was at an 8 and my contractions were killing me. So the anesthesiologist came back and gave me another dose. And then about 15 minutes later I was complete and ready to deliver! And still feeling the contractions! So the doctor came in, they got everything ready, I pushed through two contractions and Lincoln was born at 1:58. Fortunately, the epidural kicked in just in time for delivery, so although I could feel the pressure, I couldn't feel the pain. And because I was numb, the doctor removed a mole up high on my leg while he was at it! :)

Hindsight, if I would have known it would happen that quickly, I wouldn't have gotten the epidural. I felt all the contractions anyway, and it wasn't much longer after I got the epidural to hold on. If there is a next time, now I know. :) No more epidurals for me.

Lincoln came out sucking on his fingers and ready to eat. He was the prettiest pink and got a perfect 10 on his APGAR score! I feel so blessed that everything went so smoothly and Lincoln is so healthy. Welcome to the world, little guy!