Lil' Bruiser

On Tuesday Guy had his 1-month doctor's appointment, and weighed in at an impressive 10 pounds 14 ounces. That puts him in the 75th percentile for weight. Scott's been doing some historical comparisons, and Guy gained the same weight percentage - 32% - as Lincoln during his first month. Of course, Guy started out a whole pound heavier...

In other news. we got to spend a relaxing dinner at Mary and Randy's house last Sunday. Lincoln loves going there and playing with Everett's toys (that's actually all he talked about once we told him we were going), and Scott and I like having a night out with family.

We forgot to take our camera Sunday night, but we did take a few photos before we left. Since it was cold outside, we dressed Guy in his wool pants and jacket that I knitted for him. He looks pretty handsome in his duds, if I do say so myself! The pants are actually overalls that go up to his armpits (very warm and cute!), and as can see in the photo is that the jacket (which I knitted in 0-3 mo size) is actually almost too small to go around his growing belly.

A Visit from the Grandparents

Last weekend (actually, it's now been two weeks - time flies!) Scott's parents visited and the boys got to be spoiled by their grandparents.  Here's some highlights:

Here, you can see Shirley's amazing ability to read stories to *both* boys at once.  We were very impressed with this skill.

We had a bit of snow, so Lincoln got to break out his heavy winter coat and made a snowman.

Even Grandpa Mike got in on the action and spent some quality time with Guy.  All in all, a very nice weekend!

Takin' A Break

The votes are in, and many of you were very close in your guesses! As your reward, I have some pictures of Guy hangin' out during his first "real" bath in the baby bathtub.  

Here's the actual totals - (note: there were also some labs costs but I don't have those handy):

• Hospital: $6,500
• Doctor (Linda): $3,100
• Doctor (Guy): $1,600
• Total: $10,200

The bills do not indicate if the chicken fried steak dinners (or the extra pieces of carrot cake) impacted the cost. Here's your reward!  Note his calm, cool expression.  He is *way* too tough to be excited about a silly bath.

A Model Baby - and a contest!

Yesterday Guy and I braved the cold to get Guy's first official portraits taken.  Our friend Stacey Schmitz is an awesome photographer, and believe it or not Guy was actually awake for the entire session -  I can't wait to see how they turn out!  The event was preceded by a bit of stress, however, when I realized my "little" guy was growing fast and the newborn outfit I had picked out didn't really fit anymore - we made a quick change and he was presentable in some 0-3 month digs

Now for the contest!  The prize, as usual, is that everyone gets treated to even more cute photos of Guy.  Scott and I are fortunate to have excellent health insurance, and as a result our out-of-pocket cost for Guy's birth was very small.  We're now getting our "explanation of benefits" statements from our insurance company that show the actual charges for Guy's arrival.  Can anyone guess how much it costs to have a hospital birth?  Keep in mind that we stayed two nights in the hospital (in which I ate 2! chicken-fried-steak dinners) and had no anesthesiologist  charges.  The answer will be next time!

For now, here's a photo of the brothers hanging out together.

Guy in action

Since Guy was sleeping in yesterday's post, I think it's time to show this video of him awake and in action.  Lincoln is providing the commentary - his Thomas trains had derailed and he had just managed to get them all back safely on the track when Scott started filming.

Home Alone - Part Duo

Scott went back to work this week so I am officially "home alone" with Guy this week.  I wanted to take a photo to show some of the fun activities we've been up to so far, but usually when he's not sleeping we're usually too busy feeding, changing diapers, or cuddling to take a picture - plus he's awfully cute when he sleeps! 

...and here's the "duo" part of this post - a picture of Guy's big brother sleeping in the same Boppy.   Lincoln was about two months old in this photo, but I think you can still see the family resemblance.

Our First Field Trip

Today we took our first field trip as a family of four.  On the advice of one of Scott's coworkers we checked out Science City at Union Station.  You can get an annual pass at a reasonable price, and it includes unlimited visits to Science City and the Planetarium.

We started getting ready for our big outing at 9:00 am, but didn't actually make it out the door until 10:00.  Once at the museum, Lincoln had a lot of fun checking out the "toys".  Here Scott is showing him how one of the exhibits works - this one involves rolling balls down different tracks.

Of course, Lincoln decided that it would be much more fun just to carry the balls around the museum.

As for Guy, he spent the entire trip asleep in his cozy bear outfit.  It may be a while before he can truly appreciate these family outings.

Overall, Science City turned out to be a great way for the entire family to spend a cold January morning together.

Taking Care of Guy

Taking care of Guy is really hard work, as you can see in these photos:

This morning I had to spend a couple of grueling hours watching Guy as he napped.  It required all of my concentration.

Guy likes to be held, so as you can see Scott spent a lot of time yesterday keeping him happy. It is difficult, all-consuming work.

Of course, it would be nice if all of this napping would translate into a lot of sleep at night, but so far Guy is turning out to be a regular newborn and waking up every 2-3 hours.  

Guy's 1 week checkup

Guy had his one-week checkup on Friday, and he is doing great.  He's an eater and a grower - he gained a couple of ounces over his birth weight.

He also measured in at 21 inches, which is nearly 3 inches more than when he was born.  We're assuming that he not growing insanely fast but in the craziness of his birth he was mis-measured at 18.5 inches.  I guess only time will tell.

The last couple of days have been uneventful.  We're all just getting used to each other and getting into our new routine. We're very thankful to everyone for the cards and help recently. Mary made us dinner a few nights ago, we got a Cookie Monster fruit basket from our friends Jon and Heather, and Joni has changed a few dirty diapers.

We did have our first parental test recently when we tried to give boys baths at the same time.  Guy was screaming because he was cold, and Lincoln was crying because he had shampoo in his eyes.  It wasn't pretty.  The only picture we got was a pre-bath test of Guy's baby bathtub.

Here's a picture of Lincoln playing with a new marble game he got for Christmas (with Guy watching in the background) and Lincoln and Guy posing for a picture. We're not sure why Lincoln pulls his shirt up now when he poses for pictures, but he says he learned it from Aunt Joni (Hmmm...Not sure what she's teaching him :) ).

Home Alone

Yesterday was our first day at home with no help from grandparents, brothers, or sisters (although Mary brought us dinner, and it was very nice).  The day went very well.  

Linda did all the work, Guy slept when he wasn't eating, and I cleaned the house.  Lincoln went back to school and got to share photos of his baby brother with his friends.  He is the third kid in his class of seven to be a big brother!

In other news, the night Guy was born the big maple tree in our front yard was blown over by the crazy winds.  Luckily (for us) the tree fell into our neighbors' yard and driveway and not towards the house.  It was completely blocking the street, but there was no damage to anyone's property.

We found a tree service that would clean it up quickly, and they spent most of the day yesterday sawing, hauling, and grinding.  Lincoln had fun watching them put the big pieces into their massive grinder, and we were impressed that they removed every speck of the tree - not a single twig was left in our yard. 

Photos from Guy's First Days

As promised, here are some photos from Guy's first few days:

Here's his first "official" picture.

This is the photo I took of Scott shortly after Guy was born.  Aren't they cute?

This shows his weight. (8 lbs. 4 oz.)

And here's the whole family!  Lincoln was very excited about meeting his little brother, and enjoyed spending a couple of days being spoiled at home by both sets of grandparents (more pictures of that coming shortly).

Guy's Story

Well, Scott and I are home from the hospital so I thought I would share some more details about Guy's birth.  First, the stats:

Name:  Guy Phillip

Born:  December 26, 2008 at 10:29 pm

Weight:  8 pounds 4 ounces

Length:  18.5 inches

The Details:

I had my first contractions on Friday morning (December 26) around 10 am.  They were very irregular and not very intense, so we just continued on with our day's activities.  My parents were in town for Christmas so we had breakfast and lunch together.  I also took a trip to Target with my mom to get some last-minute Christmas gifts.  I was still able to walk and talk through contractions so I assumed we had lots of time.  My sister and her family came over for dinner that night.

After dinner that night Scott and I took a couple of walks around the block to enjoy the unseasonably warm weather.  My contractions were still irregular and spaced around 8-15 minutes apart, so again we assumed that we had a lot of time.  At around 8:00 pm Scott called my doctor and the on-call doctor advised us to go to the hospital.  Scott put Lincoln to bed and we headed to the hospital around 9:00 - still assuming we'd be in for a long night at the hospital.

We arrived at the hospital at 9:30.  I had a few intense contractions on the walk from the emergency room (after hours) entrance to the birthing center, and I took a brief pit-stop at the bathroom on the way.  When we arrived at the birthing unit we discovered that the doctor we talked to had not informed the hospital that we were on our way, but luckily my doctor was already there with another patient.

We arrived at the room a little after 10 pm.  The nurse hooked me up to the fetal monitor and said that she would remove the monitors after 20 minutes so I could walk around.  I was measuring around 6 centimeters.  Since we were planning an unmedicated birth she brought a birthing ball and went to have my doctor sign the papers authorizing that I would not receive an IV.  I then proceeded to have the most intense contraction I have ever experienced (very unpleasant - I do not recommend it!) and felt the urge to push! 

Scott rushed out to find a nurse, and when she came in she confirmed that the baby was about to arrive.  She told me not to push - which was pretty much impossible, and Scott had to help by opening the packet of "delivery" instruments as she found the doctor and some other nurses.  They didn't have time to set up the bed for delivery - as my doctor sat down I had two big pushes and Guy was born!  It was all very intense and definitely not the delivery I expected - we weren't even checked into the hospital until Guy was over four hours old - but I got to spend the night with my baby instead of in labor.

The family's all at home now, and we're all having fun getting to know each other.  The next post will have more photos!

Well, that was fast

We have a new baby. Here's how it went.

8:00 pm - Call doctor
9:30 pm - Arrive at hospital
10:30 pm - Guy Phillip enters the world

Linda did a great job. This time instead of pushing for 2 hours, she
had to hold the pushing back until the doctor arrived.

The full details will be coming later.

Tonight's the night

Well, we think this is it. Linda has been having sporadic contractions most of the day today, and they've recently become more regular and intense.

We've put Lincoln to bed, done a couple of walks around the block, and called the doctor. We'll be headed to the hospital soon, and won't be coming back until we have a new baby boy. (Grandma and Grandpa are staying at our house with Lincoln.)

I tried to tell Lincoln that he'll wake up tomorrow a big brother, but I'm not sure it sunk in. We think he'll make a great big brother...and he gets to start soon.

That's all for now. More to come...

A Moonlit Ride...

Still no baby, but Scott and I are looking forward to many more scenes like this one, where Lincoln decided to take a break while I was changing his clothes and take his truck for a ride around the house.

Lincoln loves running around in just his diaper, and has many fancy diaper-only moves including the "sumo squat", the "crazy frog-hop", and my personal favorite, the "scream and run away as mommy chases me with a t-shirt".

Another quick update

Well, another day with no new baby.  We're trying to enjoy every peaceful night to its fullest because we know they are numbered.  I'm also anxiously grabbing my phone every time it rings to see if it's Linda.

At this point, we're hoping he can wait until after Christmas so everyone will be here and Lincoln can have a fun Christmas morning at home.  I guess it's out of our hands.  We'll keep you posted.

In other news, Lincoln got his first real haircut recently.  He was looking a little ragged, so we took him to a Great Clips by our house.  We weren't sure what to expect, but he did great.  I think he really liked it.  Here are a few pictures.

No news is...good news?

No new cute photos for this post - just an update to say that I had my 39-week appointment today.  I am just a little less than one week from my due date!  Of course, that means that we're less than a week away from Christmas, too.  Most of our shopping is done, and thanks to Lincoln's help everything is all wrapped and under the tree.  I think Lincoln is very good at keeping the gifts a secret, too - every time I ask him what Scott has wrapped for me he says "books", so either I'm getting a lot of books this Christmas or he's learned the fine art of subterfuge.

Just a quick update...

Since Linda's due date is getting near and people have started asking daily, I thought I'd give you all a quick update on the baby situation -- there's no new baby yet.  We'll keep you posted.

Christmas is just around the corner

Christmas is less than two weeks away, which means lots of excitement at our house.  Lincoln got to meet Santa Claus for the first time at a party at my office.  He was really excited up to the point when he had to sit on Santa's lap.  Then he was more stunned than excited...although he didn't cry.  Here's proof.

The other excitement is the pending birth of baby #2.  Linda is doing very well but is certainly ready for the pregnancy to be over with (especially when she's got to walk to work on the icy, sub-zero streets). I think we're as prepared as we'll be, so now we wait.

P.S. I've got the blog hooked up to my new Blackberry, so there will be up-to-the-minute blog posts when the action begins.  I have assured Linda that she will get top priority over the blog posts while she is in the labor.

T - Minus 2 Weeks

As of this Thursday I will be 38 weeks pregnant, so the clock is ticking! Lincoln was a week late, but I'm getting everything ready at home and at work just in case "baby brother" decides to arrive early.

We've warned Lincoln that babies don't sleep all night, and as you can see he's making sure to store up his sleep. I'm not so sure that he'll be much help during those 2am diaper changes...

Back from Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving.  We travelled to Lincoln to celebrate with my parents for the weekend, and Scott's parents visited on Thursday evening and Friday.  Lincoln had a great time with both sets of grandparents, and even got to sleep in a Big Big Bed.  This trip was our last official trip as a family of three...the next time we take a long car ride it will include two car seats in the back!

Here is a Thanksgiving photo of Lincoln and his daycare friends.  Lincoln really likes his "school" and can name all of his friends in the photo.   We're amazed that the teachers managed to round up nine 2-year-olds and make them sit still long enough for a photo.

Lincoln's New Style

As Lincoln gets older, we are enjoying seeing his personality emerge. As part of this process, he has started to develop his own personal sense of style. As you can see, his preferred hairstyle is the "bedhead" look, which consists of a poof of straw-like hair at the back of his head that defies all attempts at brushing. He also trends towards the "alternative" look with his body art - multiple tattoos that indicate he'll either be a rock star or a Starbucks barrista when he grows up.

Ukrainian Adoption

Some of you know this, but I'm sure some of you don't.  Recently, a coworker of mine and his wife traveled to Ukraine to adopt three children (siblings ages 2, 3, and 4).  

They have been chronicling their adventures in a private blog until they kids were officially theirs.  Well, the kids are theirs, and their blog is now public.  So if you're interested in their adventure, check out their New Family Recipe.

GO VOTE!

A Tale of Two Babies...

I just realized that I haven't posted much about the new baby.  Yes, I am indeed still pregnant, and "Baby Brother King" is still due for arrival at Christmas.  We have most of the items purchased for his room - a crib (more on that further down in the post), a dresser, and a hefty supply of newborn diapers - but we're still in the process of putting it all together so no photos yet!  The nursery theme is "jungle animals", and here you can see Baby Brother in his "native habitat" as we enjoy an especially warm fall day.

And speaking of babies..."Big Brother King" has hit yet another milestone on the way from babyhood to kid-hood.  A few weeks ago Grandma King brought down Scott's old twin bed and we officially moved Lincoln from the crib to the "Big Boy Bed".  Lincoln loves his new bed and didn't mind at all giving his crib to baby brother.  Unfortunately, he did manage to fall out of the bed a couple of times before we wised up and bought a guardrail, but since then there have been no mis-haps and no toddlers wandering around the house at midnight.