Welcome Micah Wesley!

Our due date was not until January 24th, so it was a surprise to welcome our new little one two and a half weeks early, on January 6th! I had been assuming he would be late, like his sister, and we'd have time to finish up all the last minute setting up and getting ready.

At 37 weeks I was diagnosed with a condition called cholestasis of pregnancy, which means that rarely for some women their liver and gall bladder don't work as well while pregnant, and it can lead to some complications for the baby. It goes away after delivery, but they like to deliver babies earlier to avoid the possible complications. So, basically it meant they wanted to induce the next day! After a good conversation with my doctor, we decided to go in that evening (the 5th) to check things out, see where I was and the baby was, and then induce in the morning.

I knew that our kiddo was healthy and okay, but I was anxious not knowing if I was ready. And what would it mean to be induced, given my goal of having a natural birth? I was also anxious to not have as long of a labor as before.

Thankfully, when I went to the hospital, I was already dialated to 3 cm - which means we were partly there already. At 9:30 Wednesday morning my doctor broke my water - and that is all it took. Mark was so supportive and encouraging, and an active participant the whole time. We walked, I got a nap, and my contractions slowly increased and got more intense through the day. At 3, we talked with my doctor about whether we needed to hurry things along, or if it was going the way it needed to. She decided to check back in with us at 5 - but we didn't that far! Things got more intense, and 45 minutes later and less than 5 minutes of pushing, I almost gave birth to Micah sitting on my yoga ball!

Naomi has welcomed Micah, and while I can see she wants more time with us, she really loves her brother.

Most everyone knows that Micah did not have a name when we went to the hospital - in fact, that was one of our concerns having to deliver early - this boy didn't have a name! Mark and I had some quiet time together in the hospital to discuss it, and consider him. We came to Micah after batting around a few options, and Mark reread the old testament book of Micah a couple of times, and remembering the themes there -- 'What does the Lord require of you? But to do justice, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with our God.' We chose Wesley after Mark's dad and granddad.

January 2010

Today Naomi and I made a calendar for January. She had an advent calendar all through December that helped us get to Christmas - maybe this will help get to a baby brother? Of course, daily chocolate was involved with the other...

I put in the days and numbers and significant events (first day at new school, when her brother is due) Naomi added her own pictures and story. The order is a bit tricky to follow, but it involves Jack (from Jack and the Beanstalk), a tree monster, a bad guy who fights the tree monster to save the good guy (cause sometimes bad guys do nice things for good people), and Jack's mom, who somehow does something to make the tree monster bleed and keep Jack from feeling scared.

New One

So, I really can't keep up these days -- that is quite obvious on this blog. But you know, with a three-year-old, and full-time work, and being pregnant...oh. Have I not mentioned that on here? Yup, Naomi is going to be a Big Sister sometime around the end of January! And hopefully next week we'll find out if she is going to have a little brother or little sister.

Naomi is adapting to the idea- so much in fact that she calls the baby "my baby", and corrects me if I say its mine. She has decided they will share a room, and we talk alot about how special Naomi is to us, that she used to be little in my tummy, and now she is big and there will be a new baby. As excited as she is, I can also see that she wants to be close more than her usual. She knows there is change, that mama is tired alot, and that there is this new baby coming. I am really aware how this time it is not just Mark and I welcoming another person, but that it is three of us doing this together.

The "Green-with-Carrots-Marshmallows-and-a-Duck" Cake. and Umbrellas.

This year when I asked Naomi what kind of cake she wanted, this was her answer: green, with carrots, marshmallows and a duck. She was pretty consistent with her message - the only change was the addition of umbrellas right at the end. So this is what she got!

Happy Birthday Naomi!

No picture for this yet, but the girl turns 3 today! Amazing to think about where we were when, etc etc. Naomi enjoys hearing those stories, actually. She is quite excited about the Birthday, and so we will be celebrating for what feels like the whole month of July. We let her open her birthday present from her Granddaddy and Dot Dot last night --- a singing strawberry shortcake card with matching stickers (so cool) and a bright pink canopy/netting thing to hang over her bed (AWESOME). Naomi thinks its all the coolest, and spends hours sitting on her bed with the tent closed, opening and closing the singing birthday card.

Tonight she gets daddy time and phone calls. Tomorrow she gets swimming at (hopefully) Hamilton Pool and her present from us. Saturday she gets her Cake (yes the capital C is deliberate - this has been Anticipated for months). Then we get a family reunion and fireworks. Not bad for 3. I like that America will send her fireworks every year. Its a nice perk. :)

Summer Haircut

Movin' Up

This week Naomi has made the long-awaited move from Dragonfly to Starburst. In pre-school land that means she has moved from the 2-year-old class to the 3-year-old class. And she is super-duper excited! As soon as we got a call last week letting us know there was space, she has been talking about it. It has been time for her for a while - she has been one of the oldest kids for a while, several of her friends had already moved.

So far she is fitting right in. Yesterday when I picked her up, her teacher told me I had just missed seeing her run around in the spiderman costume! And when an older boy told her that she couldn't be spiderman, because spiderman is a boy, she told him "yes I can."

Something about the move has helped her in dropping off at school too. The last month or so has been more difficult for her - she has had a hard time letting me go, and we have had a few days of saddness. We worked out a solution together, and she has been hanging out with one of her teachers in the mornings, which has helped. But since moving up, she has been really comfortable on her own, and playing on the playground on her own. It really amazes me how aware she is of that getting bigger/still little journey that she is on.

Firefighter Naomi

Firefighters

Drive, Drive, Drive

Smoke when we go

Pour out the water

People feel better

written by Naomi, May27, 2009

Naomi's grandmother "Dot Dot" helped her write this poem. We took her to the children's museum in Denver last week, where they have a room with a fire truck, and firefighter coats and hats to wear. Naomi was in heaven -- The day before she told me she wants to be a firefighter when she grows up!

Happy Mother's Day

Yesterday I was greeted at the door with,"Mama, I have a card for you! It has butterflies on it."

My Big / Little Girl / Mama

It is the theme of Naomi lately. She has been wearing underwear for almost three weeks now, and despite many accidents, she is getting better and better at it - yesterday she had none, and last night she actually wore underwear to bed (we were totally out of pullups) and slept all night! This morning when I called her "little girl", she said "I'm not little." What are you then? "I'm a big girl!" So true, dear.

In this picture (you may not be able to see it) Naomi is holding her baby doll in a scarf. After hanging out with some friends-with-babies using slings, Naomi was playing with her baby and asked me to tie the scarf around them! A few days later, when a friend got out her sling for her baby at our house, Naomi went and got her things as well. And then copied her rocking motion too.