Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Thanksgiving 2011

This year we were able to make the trip to the cabin so that we could spend Thanksgiving with Aaron's Sister Lauren and her family. Sarah and Ian were also able to make it. We had a really great time and the girls just love spending time with Eliza. Grayson was hardly ever put down and nothing could have made him happier. We played games, laughed a lot, and ate great food. Thanks for sharing your Thanksgiving with us Lauren and Family! We had a fantastic time.


This is how Grayson spent his Thanksgiving meal. Nikki and Eliza.

Molly and Lilly. Sarah and Ian




Oh Chandler! Ken and Nelson.


Aaron and Lauren. Molly spending time on the couch. That couch always does funny things to her hair!

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Bath Time

I haven't really taken any pictures of Grayson and his first bath, so we just snapped one... sometime around his very first bath.... I think it works.

I swear something just happens when you have 3 kids. It's like the picture taking get so much less than they were with your first and your time split 3 ways is, well, split 3 ways. And then you add in the time you need for your husband/marriage/relationship and well... you can see what I'm saying. So I must apologize now to Grayson. I'm sorry, but I will try my best to document your life as you grow up. I may not always get the picture taken, but I will certainly be there no matter what to support you through it all. And in the end, I hope the memories we make together will out way the lack of pictures.

10 diapers

So I send Molly upstairs to bring some of her diapers and here is what she brings....

It's like diaper-palooza! It takes her like 5 minutes to get them because she tries to bring so many and then she can barely keep a hold of them, so they spill everywhere. But she is just so darn proud of hereself and so proud of the fact that she got them all down the stairs all by herself. She is such a silly girl!

Monday, November 28, 2011

Cleaning





At our house we have been really trying to give the girls some more responsibilities, especially when it comes to cleaning the house each week. So, every Saturday morning, the girls fight over who gets to clean the toilet! I can hardly believe that this task is their favorite one. We had to take a picture, just so that we can prove to them in the future that yes, you actually liked doing it. Yes, your were only 5, but so what,now clean the bathroom!

Sunday, November 27, 2011

A Month in Review

One week old

One week old

One week old

two weeks old

Two weeks old

two weeks old

Two weeks old

three weeks old



We are finally adjusting to having a new little one here in our family. He has been a great baby. He sleeps at night and only gets up when he is hungry, then goes right back to bed. I was totally prepared for a baby that wanted to have awake time in the middle of the night, but he is not like that at all. His awake time is between 8 and midnight and then he is ready for bed. It is great! We are also starting to establish a better routine with everyone. Maybe one day soon we will have it all down pat, but for now we are pretty flexible and just adjusting to all the new dynamics of our house. The girls are in love with him! So much so we tell people that he has 3 mothers.


During the first few days that he was home, anytime he would cry, Molly thought that he was hurt or in trouble. It took a while to convince her that babies just cry. Twice she picked him up from his bouncer when he started to cry. The first time she picked him up under his arms and then called to me that she had him. I was surprised that first time and we talked about not picking him up, because she is still little, and I thought that was that. Well the next time she picked him up, I was at the sink making his bottle and she says, "I have Grayson". I turn around and she is holding him by an arm and a leg and he is upside down. I kind of, might of freaked out just a little and we then had a long talk about not picking our brother up. But, I'll be honest, I would have taken a picture of it had I not been afraid that she was going to drop him!


Lilly has been a huge helper she loves her brother and wants to protect him from everything. Needless to say, he gets a whole lot of kisses and hugs from his sisters!

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Going Home

We were so happy when we could finally take Grayson home from the hospital. He came home on Tuesday the 8th of November. The only thing that was keeping us there was that he had to finish the antibiotics that they had started him on. He is absolutely perfect and they couldn't ever find anything wrong with him. We are so glad we don't have to drive back and forth to the hospital anymore, but we were so lucky to have my Mom here. That made everything go a lot smoother. Thanks Mom for everything! We appreciate it more than you will ever know.



Our first family photo

Monday, November 7, 2011

Grayson

Here are some more pictures of Grayson during his first few days of life. Needless to say, we are in love....















Sunday, November 6, 2011

The Peepee Teepee



My good friend Britni made me some peepee teepees for Grayson. I had one in the diaper bag and Lilly found it and, not knowing what it was, put it on her head and said "Look Mom it's a little hat!" She is so silly!

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Meeting our Brother

The girls got to come to the hospital and be in the NICU so they could meet Grayson for the first time. They were enthralled with him and loved him from the very beginning.



Friday, November 4, 2011

Welcome Grayson Michael Haws!




Grayson Michael Haws has finally arrived (much to my surprise!). I honestly didn't believe that he would come on his own, but that shows how much I know, or don't know in this case.




I started having mild contraction on Wednesday afternoon. Nothing big, just a little uncomfortable. Thursday arrived with still more contractions, but again I was convinced that I couldn't possibly be in labor and besides the contractions were still 10 minutes apart anyway. On Friday I saw my doc. and she told me that it is possible that I am in labor seeing as I was dialated to a 5 on Friday morning. They hooked me up to the machine just to check and of course I was having hardly any contractions at that point so they sent me home and said that if the contractions get to being 5 minutes apart then I need to head to the hospital.




So we went on with our day. We took the kids to a movie and lunch and I was getting increasingly uncomfortable. By 6 pm everything started to change. Suddenly my contractions were becoming 6 minutes apart and Aaron and I were debating on whether or not we should head to the hospital just to get checked. I didn't want to go because I was convinced that they would just send me home. I know I probably sound pretty dumb to most of you who have had babies, but I have never gone into labor before, and especially not early, so I really have had no previous experience on which to draw, and I was still only mildly uncomfortable at this point! Anyway... I called my Mom, who just happened to be almost to Boise heading home herself. She asked if I was in labor and I said I think so, so please come. About 10 minutes after I hung up the phone at about 7:30 pm my water broke. This is the point that I consider labor really starting for me. Aaron found a neighbor to come help give me a blessing and then we waited for my Mom to arrive so we could leave the kids.




We arrived at the hospital at 8:30 pm and by this time the contractions were really strong and I was ready for my epidural! At our hospital you have to check in and then they check you to make sure that you really are in labor. I was not such a fan of this step in the process because it was quite clear to anyone with eyes that I was in labor.... no questions asked. So when the nurse came in, she took one look at me and checked me (I was at a 6) and wheeled me right over to a labor and delivery room. Thank you very much! So I arrived in my room at about 9:00 pm and at this point the contractions were coming every minute and I was a 7 almost 8. I was pretty much begging for drugs at this point. I am a believer in them, and I really wanted them!




By 9:15 pm the anesthesiologist explained that because I am high risk and they didn't have any record of me at all (thanks doc., I think this step needs to get fixed by your nurse) that he had to wait for lab work to return before he could do the epidural. This did not make me super happy. But then he said he might be able to do a spinal block but that he had to make a phone call first to make sure he could proceed. I readily agreed and he came back in and said that is what he can do. He then of course explained that it works faster but only last 1 hour. At this point I think I would have agreed to anything!




So by 9:30 pm I was feeling good. That spinal blocked worked a miracle! by 9:45 pm the doctor arrived and I was at a 10. They got everything set up and Grayson arrived at 10:05 pm. He weighed in at 7 lbs. 11.6 oz. and was 20 3/4 long. We are so happy that he is here!




At about 3 am, when we were all settled, I sent Grayson to the nursery so that I could get some rest. At 5 am the pediatrician came in to tell me that they had to send Grayson down to the NICU because he was having some apnea episodes. Basically he would just stop breathing. He did this 3 times in the nursery and then he did it once more down in the nicu. They thought that it was because he had some kind of infection, so they started him on some antibiotics. It has now been officially 48 hours since his birth and he hasn't had any more complications. His tests are all coming back great and he is doing superb. He is eating, pooping, and sleeping like a champ in the nicu. Now the doctor thinks that he just forgot to breathe a couple times during those first few hours of life. I mean they have a ton to learn to do all of a sudden! Anyway, We are very hopeful that he will come home by Tuesday at the latest. He just has to finish the round of antibiotics and then he should be good to go. The girls can hardly wait to have him here so that they can help with him too!




I am so grateful that this little boy has joined our family!