13 for Thursday

1. Ignore Leah's monster hand coming at you, but focus on her hair. This is why we love her full head of hair. Cute mohawks.
2. Leah is super easy. She just likes to nurse a TON and use me as a pacifier because she won't take one.
3. Addie is a good big sister to Leah. She gets concerned when Leah cries. "Uh-oh baby sad!"
4. Addie is a little tough right now. She just doesn't understand that Leah needs Mommy a lot right now. And that leads to temper tantrums.
5. Mastitis cleared up on one side to move to the other... womp womp :(
6. I have LOVED having so much family here. My mom was great with Addie. I loved having Mitch, Kenna, Marit and my dad here also. My MIL is here. She has cleaned EVERYTHING. She scrubbed my floors on her hands and knees today. I love her.
7. I am healing just fine. There are up parts of my days and there are definitely down parts, but today there was no crying episodes! I take naps every day, which is awesome.
8. Leah sleeps with me at night. I know, its probably not a great idea, but I love cuddling with her and having her close to me.
9. I try to spend time with just Addie every day. We read, blow bubbles, do puzzles, or just cuddle while watching movies together. I love my time with her. She is such a sweet girl.
10. Addie likes to sing! We sing lots of songs together. I taught her Ring A-round The Rosie today. That was fun.
11. I honestly wish Mike was able to take off more time. It has been difficult not having him home (see #7). But I know he's working so hard to provide for us ladies at home. He just loves his Leah. He is so sweet with her. He also spends some time with just Addie everyday, usually picking raspberries, but they love it.
12. The SUN is out!!!
13. I am tired, so I am going to bed. (Can you tell I am grasping at straws to come up with 13 things??)
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Its like a party

Nurse: "Mastitis is pretty much a clogged duct that invites all of its friends and has a party."
Me: (what I wish I'd said) "oh good. I'm glad some one can take advantage of this situation and have a party."
Me: (wishing what I would have said if I would have called back a few hours later) "Thanks for sending my antibiotic to the wrong pharmacy...let the party go all night long."

I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy...ok maybe, but man..
THIS SUCKS!
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Day Five

Leah is PERFECT.
She has a TON of hair. Her eyes are perfect almond shaped eyes.
She seems to be easier than Addie was, but maybe its just because we've done this before. She obviously sleeps all day and does about 2 90 minutes feeds during the night. Nursing is going 300 times better than it did with Addie. I might actually stick with for longer than 3 months.

My mom has been here for the past week and it has been heaven. Addie and Grandma just love each other. Addie threw a huge fit when Grandma left. It was pretty sad. Grandma and Addie both cried. I am excited for Grandma Huskinson to get here tonight though.

Addie LOVES Leah. Addie likes to have everyone together in the same room. Addie also shares her snacks with Leah.

My recovery is definitely slower than my last C-section, but its coming a long. Thank heavens for pain meds! The hardest part is not being able to pick up Addie, it makes us both sad. Also, I realized, I am not as exhausted as last time. Well, unless I exceed my quota for the day, then it seems that I can only cry after 7 PM. I am learning to take it easy and let others help me and realize that they WANT to be there. And I am so grateful for that. And for Mike. He is a great dad!!

But all in all, we are loving Leah and the new phase of life we are in!
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Leah Rose Huskinson

Look! There is me (puffy from my IV) and my two girls!

Here is the story:
Before we left, Mike gave me a Priesthood blessing. I felt so much comfort and peace. My dad also gave one to Mike. And I felt even more comfort. It was a beautiful moment for out family. We left for the hospital so we could check in at noon for the 1:30 C-Section. Addie stayed home with my parents and Mitch and Marit (I wish Kenna was there).

We got all checked in and we listened to baby's heartbeat for a while. And it also turns out that I started contracting at the hospital. But it didn't really matter at all.

We headed down to the OR at 1:35. I received my spinal and it wasn't bad at all! The worst part was the numbing shot before the spinal. The music in the OR cracked me up: Kanye West, Katy Perry, and Akon. It actually helped me to relax a teeny bit.

Finally, at 2:05 PM, we saw her. I was able to see her as the doctor pulled her out. She weighed 6 pounds 10 ounces, which is a lot bigger than I thought she would be. I finally got to hold her back in our room. Addie was so soft with her and excited.

The first night was torture, but last night wasn't too bad. We picked her name this morning and we decided on Leah Rose. She has LOTS of dark hair.

More pictures to come later. I am seriously falling asleep as I type.

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Ultra Feast

So, we are leaving in just a few minutes for the hospital!! I am SO EXCITED!! Nervous, but definitely there is a calm that I woke up with.
Since I am having a planned C-Section, I had to fast for 8 hours... Gross! I couldn't eat or drink anything after 5:30 this morning, so Mitch and I got up for Ultra Feast! At 5 AM we made chocolate chip pancakes, eggs with ham and cheese and OJ! It was divine! And I ate a ton! I am hungry... But not dying yet.
I am so excited to meet this new little spirit and to hold her and to see what she looks like. I know she is coming to our family for a purpose. I am glad to know that she will be ours forever.

PS I'll post pics tonight or tomorrow of our babe!!
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13 for Thursday

1. I am grateful for a daughter who likes to be "pitty." This picture is a little blurry, but last Sunday she put half a bottle of Coppertone Water Babies sunscreen on her legs and face. We found her on the stairs just covered. How could we have gotten mad at her? It was really cute and pretty funny. She just kept saying how "pitty" she was. We just stuck her in the pool to clean her off. My stairs still smell like baby sunscreen.
2. I am grateful for people who know how a 4-way stop works and how to merge on and off freeways. When it rains here or they see an orange construction cone, I swear people's brains fall out of their butts and they forget how to drive. (This is my biggest complaint lately...Seriously people, if you get there first, go first, if you get there second wait you turn, and if you do wait, don't wave me on like you're doing me a favor. And when you get on the freeway, it helps to get up to speed...let's not have to merge with the traffic going 40.)
3. I am thankful for my mom for teaching me how to sew. This week I have sewn a valance and 3 throw pillows for the baby/guest room. Also, for the simple sewing skills she taught me so I could fix Addie's stroller. And the hot glue gun that helped make the stroller cuter.
4. I am thankful for check lists. They keep me sane.
5. I am thankful for Mike and his willingness to do home improvement jobs when I can't help (like LOTS of painting.) And for letting me pick a red with a hint of pink in it for my kitchen! (Hopefully it doesn't turn out magenta...)
6. I am thankful for a house to live in and a car that runs.
7. I am thankful for a great OB and her staff. They really make me feel comfortable every time I go. And it doesn't hurt that they FAWN over Addie and how cute and smart she is (Does she really need reminding? She knows she is and I love it!)
8. I am thankful for Taco Time for filling my soft taco cravings. And having good ice.
9. I am grateful for TUMS. Especially at 3 AM when you wake up with killer heartburn.
10. I am thankful for understanding people at church, who don't get offended when you say no to adding one more thing to your load.
11. I am thankful for simple things, like blowing bubbles and playing with Play-doh, watching Mike tickle Addie so much that she gets a belly laugh that only him tickling can produce, and for taking our stuffed animals on walks outside even though it should be nap time.
12. For my family for coming to help next week when I am in the hospital to take care of Addie. And for Mike's parents for coming out to help for a couple of weeks after that. Its great to have such a support system!
13. I am thankful for Mike. He is my best friend. Sometimes we drive each other nuts (I definitely drive him nuts more often then not lately with my crying and lack of cooking), but I wouldn't have it any other way. He is such a great supporter and provider. Addie loves when he comes home. I love seeing their relationship grow. I am excited to be growing our family with him. And it doesn't hurt that he's easy on the eyes...
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38 weeks!

A. No judging the mismatched towels in my bathroom or the self portrait. Maybe I will get Mike to take a decent one.
B. I am 38 weeks pregnant, and I feel huge. BUT, 38 weeks and 2 days means that at 39 and 2 days, I'll be holding a little baby!

I have been feeling way overwhelmed these last few days with everything I want to get done (some things actually need to be done, like all my primary things since I'll be gone for a while). I am proud of myself and made a list and that really helps to break everything down for me. And I have been trying to spend lots of FUN one on one time with my Adds. At the same time, she is turning into a little pill. She'll be so happy and fun one minute and the next, she is on the ground throwing a fit. (She even broke Mike's glasses last night, and today she peed all over her rug when I was trying to get her dressed after bath time.) I am excited to see her with her new sister and to see how she adjusts to her new role. She loves little babies and worries when they get sad and cry, but she knows to give them their binkie. She is a big helper and loves to measure my tummy and take my blood pressure at the doctor's and listen to her sister's heartbeat. She knew today when we walked into the doctor's office that we were going to listen to the baby!

PS: We got a new grill! It's so much nicer than our old rusted out one! And Mike kind of bought it out of the blue. We had been wanting...no NEEDING a new one forever and he went to get gas the other day for our grill and as he says, "I happened to walk by the grills and notice they had a sale going on." So he bought one. What he won't tell you is that the propane and the grills are on two different sides of Lowe's. So his accidental notice of he grills was not an accident. He walked by them on purpose with the intent to buy. But I am super glad he did.

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Thirteen for Thursday

1. Picture one: Addie's hair all braided again today. I love it!
2. Picture two: my favorite picture from Fourth of July. Addie LOVED all the fireworks. She got a little burn on her foot from the sparklers, but she was fine. We went to the Kenmore Fireworks Show, and she was not scared at all. It kind of seemed like she almost got bored with them.
3. 12 more days!! I am so excited.
4. I am sewing pillows, valance and cushion for the rocking chair all for the babies room. It feels great to sew again. There are lots of things I would like to sew, but I don't think I have enough time.
5. I am ashamed to mention that I finished a box of cereal on my own in 24 hours.
6. It rained today for the first time in 3 days, and we couldn't play outside. I know it was only 3 days, but spending most of our days outside was heaven.
7. I am getting a pedicure tomorrow with a very good friend. My feet couldn't be more excited. They have been feeling neglected since I can't really reach them.
8. Addie has been pretty good lately for the most part, but also really emotional. The littlest things will set her off that never used to.
9. I bought Addie a little pool the other day. We put the slide in it and she loves that! We also ran through the sprinkler. That was SO much fun!
10. Can it be Saturday yet? I loved having Mike home on Monday. I wish he had a lot more time off when the baby comes. He is so great and works so hard all the time. Mostly I want for him to have some time off to relax. And helping out in the middle of the night doesn't hurt either.
11. I bought this soap the other day at Bath and Body Works called Caribbean Escape and it smells like Costa Rica, where we went on our honeymoon. Actually it smells like a Pina Colada, which I lived off of when we were there. I want to go back and have ten days again to just sit by the pool, read, and enjoy some alone time with Mike.
12. Speaking of alone time, we get a date on Saturday courtesy of our good friends. We are so looking forward to that. We'll probably just do dinner and a movie, since I can't do much else, but it will be our last date before baby comes.
13. Did I mention that she'll be here in 12 days?? And how excited I am! We are both excited to add to our family!

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Family Reunion.

OH MY GOSH...I didn't take one picture at the family reunion. I SUCK.
BUT- it was so great to see just about everyone. We were only missing 6 or 7 people.

My grandparents were married in June of 1947! (Correct me anyone if I'm wrong) They are so sweet and such an example to me of good, stalwart people. But 64 years later, 77 people have come to their family, in-laws included. And in the next few months, that number will hit 80!

We drove down late Friday night and crashed at my cousin Katie's house, since my parents house was bursting at the seams with a bunch of my cousins. Saturday everyone went on a little hike and I didn't go, so my mom and I hung out and played with Adds. We then met up with the rest of the family and had lunch, played baseball, the little kids ran around, we had a barbecue and then finished the night off with a talent show. Mitch and Marit did "Double Dream Feet." If you don't know what I'm talking about, watch it on YouTube. We were a little toasty and a lot exhausted. It was a long day for me.

Sunday, most of the family went to church together in the ward that my grandparents have been in since the early 60s. My dad grew up in that ward, and I lived there until I was 13. It was great to see people. Like my old Sunday School teacher, who is 93 and still going! She is so cute. And my NaNa. We aren't really related, but she is the cutest 94 year old I have ever seen. We finished the reunion off with a late lunch and hanging out. I heard some great stories, that as my cousin Jesse said, "you just can't make that up." And I thought my Uncle Todd was my dad...Twice.

The summer Addie was born, I had 7 other cousins have babies and it was so fun to see all the cute little babies play together. Addie started saying "Ro-Ree" for Rosie, Katie's little girl. Those two girls are going to be best friends. We need to live closer to each other I think.

Confession: last week I asked my doctor if I should travel this weekend. Of course since I'd be 37 weeks, she said she would prefer if I stayed close to home... Woops. Maybe I let that go in one ear and out the other. I am so glad I went. It makes me look forward to the future when I can have my own family reunion.

Today my parents and Mitch are coming up here and I am so excited to do a barbecue and fireworks with them!

PS: 2 weeks from TOMORROW is my big firework show!! But she can come anytime now that I am home!! Maybe next week??
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