A wonderful afternoon

Jen showed up this morning when my mind and body were on the edge of falling apart. I was feeling completely overwhelmed with mom duties. We decided to blow off all the chores we had and head to the park for some sunshine and change of scenery. We asked the boys to hold hands when crossing the street. It was so cute, except they fought over who was going to hold who's hand...

The temps hit in the 70's today which melted the sherbet push-ups Jen had brought the boys for lunch dessert. Caleb got the idea to eat his with a spoon. He was not going to let ice cream go to waste.

John is such an energetic boy. He's always got a funny face to share or a crazy dance to perform to keep you laughing. He is a great free spirit. Caleb truly loves spending time with him. It would seem from my blog that the two of them are always together. It's nice, but I worry about next year when John starts school. Caleb is going to need some new friends or he will miss John dearly.

Every time we go to this park, Caleb finds a bird to chase. This time it was a raven and he followed it from playset to playset calling it and trying to catch it. He usually picks on the poor pigeons. They are slow runners and Caleb just loves that!!!

It turned out to be a great afternoon. Of course, when I got home all the laundry was still there and the house was still a mess, but Caleb and I had pink cheeks from the sun and a renewed spirit.

A Sunday BBQ

We had Liz, Jen, and their kids over for a BBQ last night. The kids played in the yard and ate outside. The weather was wonderful, but as the night went on the mosquito's came out. I've been told the bugs are very bad here!!

Everyone decided to bring steaks....except the kids don't eat steaks, so we had 8 steaks for 3 adults. It worked out great though because it gave leftovers for everyone.

The baby is never left alone for long. He's getting spoiled!! The ladies never get a chance to hold Riley because the kids fight over holding him.

This is Max, Liz's oldest. Riley loved being all sprawled out and warm in his lap.

A great day

Yesterday was a great day. It started out with Riley finding his thumb and never wanting to let it go. It was pure accident that it slipped into his mouth, but once it was in there he was the most content baby in the world.

Then we went to John's first baseball game. It was so cute watching all these little kids his age try to keep their focus on playing baseball instead of the fact that everyone was watching them. You know what kids this age do when everyone is watching them??? Perform...perform somersaults and dances and fight positions and sing and all kinds of greatness. It was awesome!!!!!

Caleb had a great time watching the game. He was John's biggest fan and cheerleader. He yelled and clapped and encouraged John with words of wisdom, "go, go, go!!!!" Thankfully Jen kept an eye on Caleb and didn't let him run off into the playing field.

We finished off the day with a potluck dinner at our CO's (our ship's captain) house. The kids played in the yard and us wives got to have some adult time. Caleb and John practiced some wrestling moves. When the two of them get together, it's pure boy time and the wildness of boys is evident.

Two weeks old

Riley is two weeks old today. It has been the fastest two weeks of my life. It has also been the greatest two weeks, very exciting.

And then there were 3

Shawn left on Monday. He is gone now for the next 5 1/2 weeks. My first night alone with the boys was a nightmare. Caleb didn't want to get a bath and fought me all the way the stairs, the baby decided he wanted to eat while Caleb was brushing his teeth, so I had to run downstairs get a bottle and the bouncy chair all the while I hear Caleb upstairs yelling, "mom, I gotta pee, I gotta pee!!! When I get upstairs Caleb is screaming and there is pee all over the floor. The baby is crying, Caleb is crying, I'm crying. It was awful. And then once I got Caleb into bed he was up every hour crying because his daddy got him sick before he left....Yes, Caleb is sick with a terrible cold where he has snot running down his face at all times and can't breath through his nose, hence the non-sleeping. Oh what a night!
Now last night I was prepared!!! I brought a bottle upstairs prior to bath time, I had the bouncy chair ready in the hallway, I had the humidifier running in Caleb's room, the Vick's rub ready, and I took a deep breath before telling Caleb it was bath time....of course he fought me up the stairs, but this time I didn't have the baby in my arms and I was ready for the fight. Needless to say, things went better, not perfect, but better. It's a hard adjustment going from one baby to two and then to be a single parent is really difficult. I don't know how single parents do it everyday, all the time. My heart goes out to them. They deserve a paid weekend vacation once a month!!!
Riley has been a blessing child, thank goodness. He's the best sleeper ever, so I get 3 to 4 hour bouts of sleep, but I still feel so tired during the day. My great accomplishments these days are if the kids are still alive at the end of the day. I've had the same basket of laundry sitting on my coffee table now for 3 days. I'm not sure if it'll ever get put away. Oh well.
My plan today is to get Caleb out of the house for awhile and maybe get some clothes in the washing machine. Tomorrow, I'll try to get them in the dryer......I haven't had to make dinner because all my wonderful friends have taken care of that for me. I've had homemade chicken soup, jambalaya, pot roast, salad, and there is more in my freezer. I have been blessed with a great support system. I'm not sure if and when I'll get thank you cards out to everyone for their support, but I hope everyone knows how much I have appreciated the phone calls, cards, flowers, packages in the mail, e-mails, and meals. Thank you all for thinking of us. We are feeling the love :-)

All my boys

I love being surrounded by all my boys (daddy included). I couldn't have dreamed the joy and pride that comes from being part of such a family. I truly am blessed.

Caleb looks like a giant next to Riley. I can't wait for Caleb to teach him all the greatness that comes with being a boy.

Riley had his 2 week check-up today. He is 7.8 lbs, so he's almost back to his birth weight. He's lost all his umbilical cord and has an inny bellybutton like the rest of his family.

Caleb protected his little brother while we were at the doctor's office today. A young boy about Caleb's age came up to Riley and started to touch his car seat. Caleb came up to the boy and said, "No!" put his hand out to keep the boy away, and put his other hand on the car seat. It was so cute!!!

Oh, so similar

These two could not look more alike. It's like looking at twins, only their 2.5 years apart. I can't wait to put a baby picture of Caleb next to a picture of Riley and have everyone guess who's who.

Some great labor details

I know many of you are wondering how labor went....considering it was labor, it went fairly well. Shawn and I checked into the hospital at 11:00am and I was started on Pitocin to increase contractions. I got an epidural around 4:00pm and Riley was born at 6:14pm. There was no tearing or cutting and Riley came with about 6 good contractions. I did have an abundant amount of amniotic fluid that was nicely released when Riley came out and soaked the midwife and nurse as well as showering the wall behind them...and as soon as Riley was born they placed him up on my chest where he decided to pee all over me. Caleb came out pooping and Riley came out peeing.

It was a great experience. I couldn't have done it without Shawn. He was the best labor coach ever!! He kept me breathing when I didn't think I could and kept me laughing when I just wanted to cry.

Caleb stayed with a friend the night we were in the hospital, but then came and stayed with us the whole next day. We were released 26 hours after Riley's birth. It was nice to come home.

Caleb has taken to being a big brother very well. He loves his baby. He likes to help out with diaper changes and helping get Riley dressed, but he doesn't like when Riley cries, especailly if he's holding Riley. Caleb also likes showing off his baby brother to anyone who wants to look.

Welcome Baby Riley

We would like to announce the birth of our newest family member, Riley Aaron. Riley was born on April 10th 2008 at 6:14pm. He was 7lbs. 11ozs. and 20 inches long.

Waiting out our time

Well, there is no baby yet....we are waiting. In the meantime, we have been walking and planting flowers and giving haircuts.

Caleb wasn't too patient during his haircut until he was given a Thomas the Train catalog book to look at. And then he was happy to sit as long as I didn't get near his ears.

He is so handsome with his hair short, although it makes him look a little more like a trouble maker. With the weather being nice we've been hanging out in the front yard and Caleb rides his tricycle up and down the sidewalk.

Daddy tried to show Caleb how to use the peddles on his tricycle and Caleb had a fit. He doesn't like for anyone to tell him what to do....

Still Pregnant

Okay, I had a doctor's appt. yesterday and I'm measuring 39 weeks. I am currently 2 cm dilated, but my cervix is still thick. I have had lots of pressure and cramping today. Thankfully, Shawn will be home tomorrow night, so if I can just get through tonight and tomorrow I'll be good. Riley better be here by early next week. I am soooooo READY!!! I am getting anxious to meet Riley and to bring Caleb home a little brother.

Caleb has been a trooper the last couple of days. I've been slow moving and he's been my little helper. Last night he helped me bring in groceries and take items out of the bags. He's been as patient as a 2 year old can be with a mommy that doesn't want to do ANYTHING!!!