Carousel Birthday Party

Katya's carousel birthday party was a great success! Despite the fact that we were the last to arrive to our own party...how embarrassing. Craig and the girls ran to a bike shop and to Trader Joe's before hand and so we were running late. We got there right at 2pm and all our guest were there, or just arrived. Oh well. We had some helping hands to do a quick set up and get the party started! The kids had a lot of fun on the carousel. Here are some pictures!

Birthday girl

Sterling

Addison

Sean

Reagan

Elsie

Paige

Cake time!

Cousins!

Reagan and I having fun.

Thanks so much to all who were able to come!

Happy Birthday Katya!!!

Katya is 4!!! Here are some pictures of our big girl from the last few weeks. I am looking forward to her photo shoot tomorrow. We love you Katya Ann!

Yesterday she wanted pigtails!

Quite the ensamble she put together. Can we say tourist?

Bike riding fun.

Love for Elsie

She looks so old in this picture! Our girl is growing up:-)

Katya and Reagan playing in Reagan's big girl bed. She is such a sweet sister!

Growing baby!

Today was Elsie's 2 week check up. Her last weigh-in was exactly 2 weeks ago, 8 lbs 1 oz......she is now 9 lbs and 8 oz! I was not too surprised because I can tell how big she is getting, but that was a bit more than I thought she would weigh. She barely fits into the newborn size cloth diapers that I bought for pictures. She is fitting well into the Bum Genius one-sized diapers (so nice we only used one pack of newborn disposables!) and will soon be out of her 0-3 mo size clothes. She measured 22 inches long, which is in the 90th percentile.

New life in Christ!

Elsie was baptised yesterday, signifying God's forgiveness for our human sins and the beginning of her Christian life.  Our new priest was kind enough to do a 'shot-gun' ceremony for us yesterday afternoon while my parents were still in town.  We had asked them to be Elsie's God parents and wanted to do the baptism while they were visiting.  They left bright and early this morning, heading east to Colorado!  They are stopping tonight and finishing the 1200+ mile trek to Lyons (the Kirkland's home) tomorrow.

Sleeps and eats

I am already feeling a slave to Elsie's naps.  I knew this would happen soon, but I was hoping not this soon!  She does not nap well on the go (no kids does, though with newborns you can often get away with it), or with lots going on around her and when she doesn't nap well, watch out!   Overly tired, she fusses and fights sleep tooth and nail.   She really needs her dark, quite room.  A warning to those who come to visit....you won't be seeing her too much!  Right now she is up for about 30-45 mins at a time and nurses for most of that.   I am nervous about how day to day life will be with her getting so easily out of sorts, and having older children to entertain.  She may prove to be my hardest baby. 

On the bright side, she may be my best eater.  I hope.  We have had to work on her latch; it has not been as pain-free as Reagan was, but not as painful as Katya.  But so far she drinks more than my other girls did in a given feeding.  Since properly draining the breast is very important in preventing mastitis and in maintaining adequate milk supply, I am hopeful that we won't have these problems. 

Reagan's PT appointment

Here is our little model taking a turn before Elsie's photo shoot:

We had Reagan's physical therapy appointment today. It went really well. The therapist is not concerned with Reagan's development and she doesn't think she will need on-going PT. She did notice that Reagan's range of motion in her left ankle is less and that she favors that leg a little. She showed up a bunch of 'games' that will stretch her calf muscle and increase range of motion in her ankle.  Melanie was kind enough to watch Katya so that Craig and I could both go to the appointment.  That was a great help.  Love to all, Brenda

Alaina Beverly, 1 year photo shoot

SO many cute Laney pictures, it makes it hard to edit! Candace, you are going to get more pictures than you know what to do with. I am still working on Laney's black and whites but will get the CD out to you soon! Love you, B

First check up

Elsie had her first check up yesterday.  She weighed 8lbs 1oz, less than I thought she would.  She is nursing really well now and my milk is in so she should be packing on the weight in no time.  She is a little jaundice but is not needing treatment.  It should clear up soon.  Our Pediatricians moved to a new location in NW Portland...in the Montgomery Park building.  It was my first time there and pretty cool.  And since Uncle Allen's office is in the same building we were able to stop by and introduce him to his newest niece. 

A few fun Elsie facts:

• So far she is a binky girl.  Yeah! (Reagan was not and it made her fussy periods much harder)
• Her eyes are slate blue, but seem to have some underlying 'muddy' color.  Craig and I think we have another brown eyed beauty!
• Her legs are long and spindly.  I think they are Craig's legs:-)  And I totally recognize them from the last month of pregnancy when they were right under my rib cage! 
• If last night was any indicator, I think she is going to not like having a dirty diaper.  Neither of my other girls really cared.  It will be kind of nice that she lets us know!

Our big day!

I will be typing up a complete birth story, a lovely way to document one of the three biggest events in my life. But for now, here is a quick outline of Elsie's birth for those who like the details:

7:30am - labor had started and I recognized it for what it was, the real deal!
8:00am - called the Midwife on-call and filled her in. Agreed to call her back in 30 mins for and update.
8:05am- decided I wanted to go to the hospital, called the Midwife back and told her we were on our way.
8:30am- arrived at the hospital, meet by my Midwife who immediately got me in a room.
9am- Initial intake was done (including monitoring of baby's heart rate) and I got in the birthing tub.
12:06pm- Elsie was born! Our midwife, a nurse, and Craig all helped pull her out of the water and into my arms. Craig got to cut her umbilical cord.

The baby nurse had to take her to the warmer for a few minutes because they had a hard time telling how pink she was in the low lighting and surrounded by the blue birthing tub. It was the perfect time for me to get out of the water and back into bed to deliver the placenta. She was quickly returned to me and we hung out in the room for the next 4.5hrs (they were short on post partum rooms for a while).

4:30pm- they moved me and got me settled in the post partum room.
9pm- the nurse gave Elsie her first bath in our room. Elsie only left our sight twice for weight checks in the nursery, probably a total of 15 minutes during our whole stay.  Perfect for me and her. 
10pm- Craig headed home to get some sleep. Elsie and I had a very wonderful, peaceful first night together. 
12am- Elsie finally latched and nursed for the first time. She is nursing great now!
1pm 7/9/2011- We took our baby home.

Introducing Elsie Ryan

Here are some pictures!

Minutes old!

Nice and pink.

Big baby! Way bigger than any of us expected (including the midwife).

She was very fussy after birth but daddy worked his magic.

Proud mama with her oldest and youngest.

Katya is in love.

Yes, Reagan was there too. More interested in the binky than the baby:-)

Our family is complete!

First bath.

Proud papa with his THREE daughters!

All of us, being silly with Reagan.

Elsie Ryan Faulkner, 1 day old. She is amazing.

Happy Birthday Grandma Sharon!!

We hope you have a wonderful day Sharon!   We will give you a call this evening.  Your card went in the mail yesterday so it will be a few days late.

After 2 nights of decent sleep, I am feeling much more patient and ready to wait a few days to meet our baby Elsie.  It should be very soon!  I had my 40wk check up yesterday.  My weight has dropped a bit which happened shortly before Reagan's birth too.  Baby's heart rate sounded good, belly measured 40cm and I am 3cm dilated, 80% effaced.  This probably won't change much until I go into labor.  I had other signs of imminent labor this morning so I feel confident that it will be sometime in the next few days.  If she is not here by Monday I am scheduled for a non-stress test and amnionic fluid check.  These are just saftey checks that most practitioners begin at 41 weeks.  I really think she will be born before then.

My parents headed out to Hood River yesterday afternoon to visit my Uncle Mark and get a bike ride in.  They will probably stay till tomorrow, but  they are just an hour and a half drive away if labor starts.  They just might get a midnight call tonight:-)  But then maybe not.  We plan going to the hospital very soon after labor begins and have some friends that are 'on-call' to watch the girls.  With all the intense false labor I have had, and my similar experience with Reagan, there is a chance that labor could go very quick.  As some readers know, Reagan was born just 3hrs and 15 minutes after active labor began. 

I thought yesterday would have been a perfect birthday for Elsie, right between both her grandma's birthdays.  But no such luck!  Oh well.  No matter the date on the calender, it will be the most special day to celebrate our youngest family member.  I can't believe we are so close to completing our family!  Love to all, Brenda

Happy Birthday Grandma Dana!!

Happy Birthday mom!!  I am so happy you are here and we get to celebrate your birthday with you!  I just wish I was feeling better so I was better company:-)

I really thought that Elsie might share a birthday with her Grandma Dana.  Strong contractions started last night around 12pm.  They were irregular, but frequent for several hours and then slowed to just a couple per hour.  I finally dosed off about 5am and was up with Reagan at 6:30.  After several more strong contractions this morning they faded away and  I was able to get a few more hours of sleep with my mom and dad helping with the kids.  Craig is back to work today and he is just dying to get 'that' call from me:-) 

I told myself I would embrace the 'false' labor (early labor, my body just likes to do it's early labor over weeks and weeks) this time around knowing it is my normal.  But man, easier said than done.  It is hard not to hope, especially last night with such strong and frequent contractions, only to be disappointed when things don't progress.  I know that it will all help when I do go into active labor, and is more likely that it will be another fast one.  It sure is exhausting though.  My horrible head cold is definitely making it harder. 

I know that it could still be a while and that I have no control over the matter.  So I am trying my best to let go of the mental stress and get through each day.  Love to all,  Brenda

Happy 4th!

Hope everyone has a safe and fun 4th of July! We are patiently awaiting Elsie's appearance. Okay, maybe not so patiently:-) I am pretty miserable with the virus the girls have had. That coupled with pregnancy insomnia, the hot weather and annoying fireworks makes for very rough nights. I am sleeping very little and completely exhausted. But everyday is one day close to meeting our baby and we are very excited about that.

Katya is feeling much better though her cough still lingers. Reagan is snotty and coughing but fairing okay. She did not get the high fever that Katya did. We are looking forward to a 4th of July party at the Tillman's tonight. My parents arrived yesterday and we are having a great visit. Now we are off for a hike in Forest Park (the guys are biking). It will be my third day of long walks and can only help! Love to all, Brenda

Charlie 3 year old pictures

I had a lot of fun photographing the Smith girls a few weeks ago. Here are my Charlie favorites! Candace, you can copy and paste these for now if you want to. You will be getting all the hard copies on a disc but it might be a few more weeks:-) Enjoy!