Rachel Jane

On Tuesday, January 22nd, we went into the hospital at about 8 AM so that Devri could be induced.  The situation wasn't quite ideal - the doctor said there was a 30% chance that it could turn into a C-section - but we didn't feel bad about moving forward and felt like it was up to us.  We decided to go ahead and go for it!  It was slow going, until about 7 PM.  30 minutes after her last check (where things were finally progressing but we figured that it would be another 5-8 hours until she actually delivered), Devri's contractions got a lot worse, and she kept saying that she felt like she should push.  The nurse, realizing Devri was completely ready to give birth, called the doctor and started prepping things.  6 short, but painful, minutes after the doctor came, we got our first look at Rachel Jane!

While Devri was pushing, Rachel's heart rate was dropping quite low.  This is pretty typical, but it was getting extended enough that the doctor was obviously starting to get worried.  The last push before Rachel was out, I remember they found her heartbeat and it was extremely slow - probably 50 or 60.  I had the thought that if she didn't come out the next contraction, things might move towards a C-section or something more drastic.  The doctor had even asked someone for the vacuum.  Fortunately (and in answer to prayer), she came out very quickly.  The reason for the dropping heart rate was immediately evident - the cord was wrapped around her neck.  The doctor immediately cut it even before her shoulders were out.  She wasn't moving or crying the way she should have been, though.  They finally determined it was just due to the stress of the delivery and she needed some more fluids.  She spent just over an hour in the NICU with an IV to help with the fluids, and was delivered to us happy and healthy when we moved from the delivery room.  She was 7 lbs even, 18.5 inches, and absolutely beautiful.

I won't drag on with all the details of her first few days, but she ended up back in the NICU the night before we were going to go home (Wednesday night).  She wasn't feeding well and she was apparently just throwing up any formula we gave her, so her blood sugars were getting too low for too long.  Blessedly, we were able to finally get her to feed and she was only in the NICU for one day while they monitored her.

*(Rachel with one of her NICU nurses, Patty, right before coming home)

Rachel is a little sleeper, or maybe I should say a heavy sleeper.  It's funny to see the difference between her and Michael even in the first week.  Michael was immediately opening his eyes and just wanted to see everything around him.  Rachel, on the other hand, cracks her left eye to check things out when she's disturbed, and might even crack her right eye open if you're lucky.  She's getting better now and has started opening her eyes more, but she loves sleeping, and loves being cuddled up and warm.  I think she's going to be a cuddler, which is something that you could never say about Michael.

I want to include just a few thousand (just kidding) of my favorite pictures of her...

Being held by her grandpa (with her eyes open!), check out those cheeks!

Michael loves his little sister (even though he told his teacher he had a new brother today in his primary class), and loves to hold her

Grandma seems to be only one who gets a smile (or something that looks like a smile) out of her so far

Michael also loves to feed her, at least until halfway through a feeding when he starts to lose interest

Being a good big brother

A little pose for the camera

Another smile for the camera

Today Michael wanted to lay down next to her in her chair

I love this picture - this is one of the most awake times she's had the entire time we've had her

All of our children (including Monkey) 

*Notice that Michael is sharing his favorite "blue blanket" (the yellow one) with his sister. He refuses to share that with anyone, so he really does love her*

Thank you to all who've helped this last week with meals and just being there especially for Devri.  We love where we live and all the support we've received from the ward, our friends, and our family.  We love you all!

Tonight, as we watched 17 Miracles about the Willy-Martin handcart company and the miracles seen in the lives of those who lived through that terrible experience, I reflect on my experiences of the last week and see many miracles in my life.  The greatest in my mind being that if Rachel had not come so quickly, the cord wrapped around her neck may have endangered her life.  We feel so extraordinarily blessed with the newest addition to our family and how much love we immediately felt for her.  I love that I can now say we have "children" instead of just "child", and  I love the Lord for His goodness to us.

*Additions to post by Devri

They, The Builders

A few weeks ago, as part of getting Rachel's room ready, we moved the changing table from Michael's room to her room. It was a no-brainer move, but that meant that Michael lost a much needed toy shelf in the process, and his room, as a result, had been a complete disaster until we bought a new shelf Friday night. On Saturday, Brian and Michael put it together. This gave Michael a chance to use his new mallet that he got from Grandpa Chadwick at Christmas, and he was super excited to help Brian. 

 The amazing thing is that he is really hitting those little nails in. His form could use some work, but...

 Brian would start a nail, and then Michael would finish it. He was pretty fast by the time they finished. And it was so cute. I took a video, but the file is so ridiculously large that I'm not going to upload it. Just imagine his little self hammering away.

And with his room finally put back together, I think we're ready for our baby to come--tomorrow!!

Baby Shower

On January 12, Lea hosted a baby shower for me at my house. Chelsea was going to co-host, but the rotten storm that hit on Friday kept her from making the trip. We missed you! Lea was AMAZING with decorating. Everything was so cute. The theme for the shower was:

 

(I made an aluminum foil and tulle wreath for the door, but by the time we remembered to take a picture, I had already dismantled it. )

The refreshments all made some reference to "Pop". Lea made white chocolate popcorn, butter popcorn, "pops" of marshmallow (dipped in white chocolate), cake pops, and "pop"ular cheese ball. We had cute frilly pink everywhere! It was so fun:

 

Instead of shower games, the guests got their craft on and made little bows and flower hair clips for our baby girl. It was an awesome idea! Thanks for thinking of it Lea!

 The funny thing was that several people commented, "Of course we would do something crafty at a shower for Devri!" It was Lea's idea, but I did think it was brilliant. And it made it a lot less awkward for my friends  who didn't know anyone else at the shower.

 Check out all these hair-clips! It makes me pretty excited!

And of course, my fabulous friends brought me great gifts. Baby shower gifts are so much better than bridal shower gifts:

Thanks to all my friends who came, and for those that still dropped stuff off, even though they were sick or had their entire household sick. I feel so loved and watched over. And especially thanks to Lea and Chelsea for their planning and execution of the shower. You are awesome!!

Four Years!

January 10th marked our fourth wedding anniversary. Go us! A friend of ours had Michael over to play in the afternoon so that we could have a lunch date--at Milagras in Orem. Yum! Thanks Sherise! And since it was our anniversary, we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner, this time with Michael. It seemed only right since he's been around for every anniversary we've ever had. When we got back, we took our traditional anniversary picture,  

 which Michael had to join us in:

And then he headed off to bed, we ate rainbow chip cake--the same kind of cake we had at our wedding--and finally watched our copy of Dark Knight Rises. It was awesome. And thankfully the baby didn't come on our anniversary.

Here's what I posted on Facebook the day after: "Thanks to Brian for a great anniversary yesterday. I can't believe it's been four years already! Thanks for being my best friend and for taking such good care of me (seriously, he clipped my toe nails last night because they're a little tricky to reach!). I look forward to many, many more."

Michael Moments

Pretty soon, we are going to be all caught up in a new baby, so I thought I'd take a moment, before that happens, to share some funny quotes from Michael.

Brian to Michael: You're my little boy.
Michael: You're my bigger boy...my older boy

A conversation with my sister, Taryn, on Christmas Eve:
Taryn: Why was baby Jesus in a manger?
Michael: Because that's where the shepherds go with their babies

A conversation with Michael shortly after his field trip to the Fire Station
Me: What will you do if you see a fire in the house?
Michael: I will say, "What the?"

Dinner conversation
Brian: You're the Best!
Michael: No you're the best!
Brian: No you're the best!
Michael: You're the best...because you're married?
(Brian and I start laughing)
Michael: Just kidding!

A few days ago, Michael was giving me a synopsis of Lion King:

Michael: And then the pig said, “Enchilada!” and the little Lion said, “Enchilada?”

He loves to make people laugh. His favorite color is dark blue. His favorite song is "Home" by Phillip Phillips. He loves anything related to Disney's Cars--and really any kind of car.

One of my favorite sounds is that of him giggling. The best is when we can get him to snort. One of my other favorite sounds is that of his little feet pitter-pattering across the living room floor when he first wakes up in the morning. He continues to fill our home and our hearts with joy, and we're so grateful for him. I'm excited to see him step into the role of Big Brother, a role I've always felt strongly that he pushed for in heaven.

**Update: January 16: I meant to put this in the post, but I forgot until today. December 30, 2012 marked Michael's last day in Nursery. I kept getting so choked up over it! Which means that on January 6, 2013, Michael had his first day in Primary. It is so strange to me that he's a Sunbeam now. He's got wonderful teachers, and they assure me that he's been really good. We're so proud of him!

One Year Later

When 2012 started, I had high hopes for it. I had no reason to think it wouldn't be a good year. We were expecting a baby, and things were looking really good. And then, on Day 1 of the new year, we got a scare that was officially confirmed on January 4--we lost another baby. Soon after coming home from that sad ultrasound experience, Brian received the news that his good friend from high school had passed away. Today marks one full year from that day, and I just wanted to take a moment and remember and express my gratitude to Heavenly Father for the blessings of 2012--blessings that I couldn't have foreseen when we "rang in the new year."

First, I'm thankful for the refiner's fire that brought Brian and I closer together in a way that nothing else really could have. It has been a hard year emotionally, but unlike other really hard trials I've had in the past, I didn't shoulder them alone. I had my sweetheart and my best friend there, crying with me. And through it all, our hearts have been made more tender.

Second, and going along with the first one, I'm so incredibly grateful for Brian. It is so nice having a major decision validated--I know I made the right one when I picked him. He's been so understanding of my emotional roller coaster ride of the past year, and he still keeps me laughing every day. I'm looking forward to growing really old with him. I have a feeling we're going to be hysterical--well, at least to each other!




Third, thanks to the threat of fire, we know what really matters to us, and it isn't our house or our stuff. It's the people and the memories that really matter. Stuff can be replaced. And that we're blessed to have family and good friends close who opened their homes to us when we were refugees.

Fourth, we learned that we made a great choice in where we bought our house. Brian's brother Ben told us we could never convince him to move out here after the fire and then the flood/mudslide a few months later. But, those two natural disasters convinced us that we live in the best neighborhood, and if anything were to happen to us, we have a strong support system of giving people all around us. Our ward split in November, and we learned just how many friends we really do have here.  We're so grateful for the wonderful people we get to live around.

Fifth, I'm grateful for a Savior. I told Brian on New Year's as we were heading to bed that I've given up putting high hopes into a new year since I felt like they were so quickly dashed last year. I told him that I'm not without hope, I'm just not placing it in a year. He said, "Isn't it nice that our hope is really in the Savior, and that no matter what comes, we have the assurance and hope that He'll help us face it?" And that statement pretty much sums up what I've learned this last year. We don't know what the future brings, and prayers are not always answered in the way we want them to be answered. But, one thing we can always, always count on is that the Savior will be there to bear up our backs to lift the burdens. He heals the hurt that results when good friends are taken back home to Him. He comforts us when we lose our children--whether in the womb or outside. He strengthens our ability to cope with constant pain and sickness--related or unrelated to pregnancy. And ultimately, because of Him, we have the hope of returning to our Father when we have finished our race here.

I can't think of my Savior without tearing up. I'm so grateful for the lessons on hope that I've learned from him as a result of loss, death, fire, flood, and a fairly difficult pregnancy that made it out of the first trimester and is still going strong. (In fact, today marks week 37, which means she is officially full-term!) It's a miracle to me, and His atonement gave me the hope and the courage to try again. When I was fearful, He gave me sweet assurances that this time, things would work out. Our God truly is a God of miracles.

So, whatever comes our way in 2013, I know the Lord will walk beside us, and everything will turn out to be some kind of wonderful.

Happy New Year!

We wanted to have a New Year's Eve party with our neighborhood friends this year, so we created an event on Facebook and invited lots of friends. We were either too late doing this, or everyone has established familial traditions, but we only had one family able to make it, which turned out to be PERFECT! A chill party with games and snacks is what I wanted, and that's exactly what we got. Michael was excited to have his friends Sir M and Sir S come over. They were excited about the party hats. 

 We put the kiddos in bed early--well, before midnight. It was still pretty late for them--between 9 and 9:30--so we did a countdown with them before tucking them in. We did this last year with Michael, and it was fun. We had sparkling juices to toast the "new year", noise makers that didn't work, and those things that you blow into and they unroll. We counted down with the timer on the camera:

Sir M apparently ducked last minute. 

After we put the kids in bed, we played a few rounds of Dominion and talked. When midnight rolled around, Brian tried to find the official countdown on TV, but we had just missed it. We didn't care. I guess we were content with the one we had earlier with the kids. Either that or we're getting old. Thanks Sherise and Cody for coming and spending New Year's with us! We had so much fun!

Sledding!

We are so happy to be blessed with snow this year! During Brian's time off for the holiday, he was able to take Michael sledding twice! The first time, I stayed home, and the boys headed for a little hill near our house. Here's before:

 And After.

 If this sort of thing keeps up, we'll probably need to buy some boots for Brian--and snowpants too!

Last Saturday, Lea called to invite us to go sledding with her crew. This time, I tagged along to play photographer. We went to the amphitheater in Eagle Mountain, and it was pretty awesome. This was Skyler's first time sledding.

 Lea and Skyler, who is sporting a mustache

 Danny

 Shayne and Skyler

 Michael had so much fun!

 Hunter

 Danny and Michael

 Poor Cole got nailed by a sledder. Check out that goose egg! The picture doesn't even begin to do it justice. 

One of the last runs of the day. Michael was so upset that we had to leave!

Hopefully, the snow sticks around for a while so we can have more sledding days.