Well I got released from YW and am now serving as the choir director at church. I survived our first performance today (Easter! no pressure) without fainting, passing out, or getting off beat haha, I exaggerate… but I was a little nervous about it.

I wanted to keep it simple so I went with Beautiful Savior from the childrens song book. Well known but awesome tune and lyrics. Sam accompanied as we do not have a pianist yet.

I wouldnt say it was breath taking but respectable for sure. And I guess we might as well leave something to work towards, right?!??

I hope that I eventually learn to love this calling. I just gotta find a way to make it more about the people and less about the music. Any suggestions for me??

I helped host a baby shower for a friend at church on Saturday and decided to try something new. I had received an awesome edible arrangement from my co-workers after WEjr was born and I wanted to see if I could make one myself.

I think it turned out okay. Took me awhile to make it but I think I could do it quicker a second time.

Here is the professional arrangement:

And here is the one I made:

Going head to head in the ‘N’ weight class: Huggies vs Pampers

—–> Pampers wins!

Both have the green line wet indicator. But Huggies leak every time.

So it’s been almost 4 weeks since WEjr was born and now I’m sitting down to blog about it. He’s sleeping in the jogging stroller right now so I have a few minutes (hopefully!) before he wakes up.

Since WE already documented our labor and delivery story on his blog, I won’t retell everything – but I did want to share some of the delightful details from my perspective, of course.

Things that I was surprised by:

1. That ‘mothering instinct’ people talk about seriously kicks in and I’m telling you…it seems to come out of nowhere. I’m not just talking about the art of breastfeeding because even after 4 weeks, sometimes it’s still a little strange to think about someone sucking on my melons (ha! excuse my crassness…but I couldn’t resist!). But I’m talking about the once foreign feelings of ‘mommy-dom’ that have taken over my life. Every little thing I do now matters to him. Things I never used to worry about, I now think about. (Ask Baba…we actually called the Chili’s down the road ahead of time – that we’ve been to a million times – just to see if they were a non-smoking location and then drove an extra distance to go to the one that was) Or then there’s the time I sent WEjr with WE during third hour of church because I knew that none of the men would ask to hold him and I was too embarrassed to actually tell people to keep their grubby hands off of him. But it’s not even just about being paranoid about germs. I think that there is an instinctive part of me that realizes that somehow I was meant for this moment – that I was born to be a mom and that everything in my life has lead up to this moment when I’d look at his tiny face and see what a miracle we had created.

2. Epidural was incredible! Okay, so I knew that it was for the pain. I don’t remember, though, the lady in the birthing class saying anything about how quickly and how completely it would work. I was surprised how fast I went from ‘he-he-hoos’ to ‘what now?!’ Although my body was literally and visibly shaking (the nurse said it was from the pain of the contractions/labor, but I’d say it was probably partially from fear too) when I was sitting there holding that pillow on the edge of the bed waiting for the anesthesiologist to stick me – within a matter of minutes – I was completely relaxed, body had stopped shaking, and feeling no pain. It was super fast acting. For the next few hours, I remember laying there (awake in the dark) trying to brace myself for what I thought would be a somewhat painful delivery. In my mind, I thought that once I got to a 10 and started pushing that the epidural would have done all that it could and that I’d have to feel the pain of the last little bit. So it was certainly a pleasant surprise when I got to the end (and I mean the very end -when I was getting stitched up and…and I realized that I hadn’t felt ANYTHING down there). And I was perfectly happy with that

3. How much my baby looks like WE. We couldn’t believe how much WEjr looks like WE!! During the 3-4 hours of epidural bliss before I got to a 10, I had some time to just lay there and think. WE was trying to sleep and I was trying too. But alas, there was no sleep for me. Anyway, I remember thinking about what we were going to name our kid. (We still hadn’t picked a name). During that time, I went through our ‘short list’ and I became pretty set on the only first name of 4 that was on our list that didn’t have ‘samuel’ for the middle name. But as soon as we saw WEjr we realized that he REALLY was WE’s junior. The resemblance was spot on and no doubt about it – this was WE’s kid. So last minute we did some re-arranging and that first name I was set on got paired with ‘samuel’ as the middle because we just couldn’t not name him after his daddy when he looked so much like him.

Things I expected all along:

1. Breastfeeding is not easy. I knew it wouldn’t be and it wasn’t. I was soooo grateful for Joni – the lactation consultant. After the 2nd night in the hospital and about 12 hours of frustration, pain, and worry (WEjr hadn’t peed or poo-ed for longer than I would have liked) – Joni came in and spent at least an hour with us. Looking back, I’m not really convinced that she really changed much about what we had been doing. Yeah, she helped me help WEjr latch on again without the shield. But what WE and I really needed at that point was really just a pep talk. Not just any ol’ pep talk – but the kind that your grandma would give you. She was calm, reassuring, informative, told funny stories and we felt SO MUCH BETTER about going home that day. Once we got home and my milk came in – we put to use everything she told us about what to expect. Luckily the engorgement period wasn’t too long/bad. And that bag of frozen peas in the freezer became my new best friend!

2. WE was super supportive and great to have with me throughout the entire process. He slept on that horribly uncomfortable chair (picture his long legs hanging three feet off the edge) in the hospital on Monday night even though I wasn’t in labor, wasn’t in pain, and he could have just gone home and come back in the morning. He kept his sense of humor even when I was bored or tired or scared. Like when he offered to sing Diana Ross the nurse in exchange for her scrounging up a cot for him to sleep on that second night instead of the chair. Or when he posted WEjr’s sonogram picture on the door to the bathroom in our hospital room since we didn’t have a refrigerator to hang them on. He was right there with Christy (him on the left and her on the right) for every single push – holding my legs and helping me along. He reminded me to drink more water when I was on observation, gave me a head scratch when I was in pain and trying not to think about it, held my hand, fed me ice chips and popsicles during labor, AND kept the twitter account updated to keep our friends and family informed real time. (WEjr’s twitter account was his idea by the way – but then you probably already guessed that.) Once we got home, WE got up with me every time throughout the night, changed WEjr’s diaper and sat there on the couch with me until WEjr finished eating and fell back asleep. I’ve since gotten the hang of it on my own – but for that first little while it sure was nice to just have the moral support.

3. Hospital food was hospital food. Even the steak and lobster dinner for new parents was just okay. But you have to give them props for trying at least. And the chocolate cake was great!

Most memorable moments:

1. “That was a good push” (said by the Dr. nonchalantly and no differently than the last 3 pushes) and then whoosh, there he was up on my belly in full view – wet, slippery, and screaming (thank goodness for healthy lungs!)

I was shocked (had no idea that I had pushed his head out), relieved (I was tired of pushing), ecstatic (here it was the moment we’d all been waiting for!), and so happy that I couldn’t hold back the tears.

2. In post partum one night we had finished eating dinner and decided to watch the rest of Sabrina. We had starting watching the movie before we were induced and were just sitting around bored in the hospital. So there we were, all three of us squeezed into my little hospital bed, snuggled up and watching a classic that I’ve probably seen a thousand times and yet this time it seemed a little different. Towards the end the of the movie I looked over at WE and he was holding WEjr. I was completely overcome with love. I loved that little guy, but even more, I loved WE… perhaps even more than ever. I couldn’t stop crying. WE thought I was getting teary-eyed from the movie. Seriously, who cries during Sabrina?!

3. Priesthood blessing from WE. When the Dr came to inform us that we were going to be induced and that we’d start not in a few hours, not in the morning, but right now – I went into a slight mode of panic. Was I ready for this? What next? After we switched rooms and the nurse gave us a few minutes alone to try to relax and get my blood pressure back down (EVERYONE was doing everything we could to avoid the magnesium treatment – which apparently is used when blood pressures are too high during delivery but it has wicked side effects that none of us, including the nurses, wanted to deal with), in that stressful moment – WE laid his hands on my head as I was laying there in the hospital bed and gave me a priesthood blessing. The words brought much needed feelings of peace and perspective and I was really grateful that WE was worthy and willing to offer that prayer on my behalf and bless me in that way.

4. WEjr taking advantage of WE’s rookie mistake during his very first diaper change. So the first diaper is really gross. WE was on duty and I’m sitting there in the hospital bed just watching WE’s every move as he struggled to get the diaper off the squirming kid. Ah hah, finally. Then there was what seemed like a whole package of wipes being whipped out and WE pretty much trying to scrape off the black tar from the buttocks. That was when it happened. A perfect stream…straight up. Pretty high too. Dad was just lucky it was aimed away from his face

is an uber nerd and I love it!

Who needs to buy a baby monitor when you already have Cisco phones in every room in the house???

If you are wondering how it works:

I can set the phone in the nursery to monitor to any other phone in the house (including the cordless in case I’m outside).  From my phone, it’s one-way so that I can hear nursery sounds (at least our test yesterday indicated that a WE cry even from the far side of the room was clearly audible – nevermind that WE has a wicked set of lungs).

The yet-to-be-tested but promised feature is that when the nursery phone is in ‘baby monitor’ mode – it does not take outside calls (which would be a must!) Now if we can just figure out the video cameras…for those time when I want picture but no sound

In honor of WE (who hates to make New Years Resolutions – or at least to call them that…), I’ve decided today that I’m going to take credit for completing a resolution that I didn’t actually make until about 3 seconds ago – which I might add was after I’d already completed it How’s that for never getting down on yourself for unmet goals!

Anyway, our garage is now completely spotless! Yesterday we spent a good portion of the afternoon cleaning, organizing, and purging. Now we no longer have anything sitting in the garage that we do not use or don’t have plans to use in the next year. In fact, some of the stuff WE put on craigslist this morning and it was AMAZING how fast it disappeared. That’s the world we live in, I guess. People will take anything if it’s ‘free’!

Now both of our cars (which fit in the garage beforehand) have even more wiggle room and best of all we actually know where everything is out there. We’ll see how long stuff stays in it’s place. But for now, it feels oh so good!

…towards the baby count down.

I got through the Christmas holiday and realized I only have 10 weeks left. No more procrastinating my ‘to-do’ list.

So this week I signed up for 5 mostly free (nice!) baby classes at the hospital including delivery, breast feeding, breast pumping, infant care, and safety/CPR. So practically every Saturday in February is booked with classes (oh and YW basketball games…ps did I mention that I’m coaching the girls team this season?)

Also this week, I made my very first  baby related purchase…wipes and one-sies I found for a super deal. Woot!

But in case you think I have gotten nothing yet in preparation, don’t worry. I’ve already received some great gifts including a crib (thanks BJ!), a really nice breast pump (thanks JH!), and lots of other super cutesie necessities from family and friends.

Fun boy clothes (thanks MIL and JS!) I love the ‘Future Rebel’ and ‘I Rule’ prints…

Nursery toys, books, and monkey stuff (thanks Mom!) I’m starting to see a trend in placing animal appliqué on the baby bums and I like it

Handmade (wow!) activity book for when junior gets a little older (thanks MIL!)

More hand-crafted. And soft! white baby blessing blanket, burp rags, receiving blankets, etc (thanks SS and MIL!)

I also got some great reads (no pic) from my sister-in-law for Christmas (thanks AH!) including ‘Secrets of the Baby Whisperer’, ‘Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems’, and ‘The 5 Love Languages of Children.’ If you have other must-reads, I’m all ears!

Now, the next few things to tackle are to finish registering (I couldn’t get away with not doing that so we are registering at JCPenney and Target), paint the nursery, find a nanny, and last but not least…decide on a name!!

I think it’s getting more and more real for WE too. He’s having dreams about being a dad (ha, some probably more like nightmares) and getting more anxious about keeping up with his workload (i.e. work, school, church, side business, and ME of course!) when the baby comes.

But life is good and we are so happy to be grounded in the gospel/our faith and to have such an awesome support system in our family and friends! Bring it on – I say!

Nephews and Niece (picture taken from my sisters blog)

The only thing I already have is the sock monkey stuff (thanks to mom!)

The rest I saw on etsy for ridiculous prices. (The ABC blocks are vintage and $80 – so I’m still trying to talk myself out of them because who buys blocks for $80 just because they are the exact right colors??? No one!)

It’s a BOY! It’s a BOY! It’s a BOY!
As much as I would have liked Hailey to have a side kick – I’m also really happy it’s a boy!

We almost didn’t get to find out today…my appointment time got moved as my dr was in delivery earlier today. When they changed the time, they mistakenly didn’t reschedule the sono along with it. Luckily the sonographer agreed to stay late and see me anyway. I think I would have died trying to wait another day or two. At first glance, she was very sure it’s a boy and I of course always was

My arm shot up in the air triumphantly and a squeal came right on out. WE was beaming that it was definitely “an Anderson.” And then we went on to see shots of each little body part and to hear her say “that’s normal.” The little guy got a big stamp o’ health and we went on our merry way!