Reece is STD free..in case you were wondering.

I love having a little man around!! He really is the sweetest little guy. I forgot just how tired you get getting up every 2-3 hours at night time. I forgot just how busy little newborns keep you even though all they do is eat, sleep, and poo. And I also forgot how many hours you "waste" just watching them dream. And how good they smell, or how cute their little grunts and squeaks are.

About a week after Reece was born, I started to notice all of this gunk leaking out of his eyes. I thought at first that it was a clogged tear duct, but then the gunky stuff was making his eyes all crusty and it was a yellowish color. So then I thought that he must have gotten some kind of infection from either Lauren or Evan since they just love to maul him with kissed every chance they get. So I made a Dr's appointment for him and took him in. Our family doc was out of town, so I just made an appointment with some random doctor in the office.

He took all of Reece's measurements and his weight, checked all his vital signs, and did all of the well baby check up things that they do. Then he turned to me and said, "This is where the conversation gets awkward." I, smiled and just inquired about what he could mean. Then he goes into this monologue about how usually when they see an eye infection with a baby this young, it is from an STD. Gonorrhea or Chlamydia. And the only way a baby can get that is through the mother. "Dude," says I, "I would be totally surprised if that was the reason. He couldn't have gotten an infection from my 6 year old or my 3 year old?" Very unlikely, he informed me. Yeah, just as unlikely as me having an STD that I pasted on to my baby. Chad has been my one and only. He then asks me a series of questions that go along the lines of this "Does your husband travel on business? Is he often in meetings late? ect.." I stopped him and said "Chad would see a girl, think she is hot, but then think about the work involved in an affair and skip it. He is to lazy to cheat. (love you Chad)" After about a half hour of trying to convince him that his diagnosis is totally off base, I finally agreed to let him test Reece for Gonorrhea and Chlamydia. He then wanted me to give Reece a series of aggressive shots to treat the STDs, which I would not stand for at all. No way. If it turned out that he did, by some crazy coincidence, have an STD, then yes, poke my child. But until then, I am not putting toxic chemicals into my one week old for no reason at all. I know that the doctor was thinking that I was some poor naive desperate housewife who had a lying cheating husband and I was to blinded by trust to see it. But I know my Chad. So I went home, thinking about what a waste of a perfectly good hour that was. Orange County Choppers was having a marathon on TV. That would have helped Reece and his leaking eye a whole lot better then that visit to the doctors office.

A week later, I still hadn't heard back from the doctors office and I had an appointment to get Reece circumcised, with our wonderful, normal, family doctor. When I told him about Reece's leaking eye, he asked me if the doctor had given Reece eye drops. "Nope, he tested him for STDs." When I said that our doctor rolled his eyes, (which I love!!) checked Reece's chart, assured me the tests came back negative (surprise!), and then checked his eyes for me. Turns out, he did just have clogged tear duct, it was just super clogged. As of today, there is no more gunk crusting up is eye, and no more talk of STDs for my little kiddos.

What a difference a day makes

The Ultrasound picture was taken on Tuesday May 10th, the other picture was taken Wed May 11th. How cool is that? Just taken one day apart. Oh and, funny story..Chad brought Evan to the hospital while Lauren was at school to meet his little brother. On the way there Evan said "Daddy, you can call him Reece. I want to call him Beans." So Evan calls him Beans.

1 and a half weeks old, and still the most adorable little man around

Are we just in love with Reece? Heck yes we are! He is such a clam little guy. I was worried beyond belief while I was pregnant with him. I have two little beautys that are angels comparatively speaking. I know that not every child is born the way a mother hopes. I think because I do have an older sister with special needs that I know that the odds are not always stacked up in your favor when you carry an other life inside of you. But then Reece was laid on my chest for the first time. His arms and legs flying in circles as he protested the eviction of his nice warm little cocoon. My heart melted right away. He is here and healthy. I didn't screw up. He is safe and sound. I love my little man. Chad, Lauren and Evan seem to echo my sentiments. I am not sure that there is an other little baby boy alive who isn't more loved on and plaster with kisses then our little Reece is. We sure love that guy.

Here is just a collection of pictures from his first week at home.




It is so cute when he stretches!! He loves to stretch like this. It cracks us up every time.

His first bath at home. He loved it. He just about fell asleep right there in the water.



I think that because this isn't my first rodeo, I totally know just how fast they grow. Before I know it Reece is going to be walking into school on HIS first day of kindergarten, Evan will be a decan, and Lauren will be to busy talking into her cell phone notice much of anything else. So while I have them all young and sweet, I am just going to enjoy them. I haven't read a book in so long, and I no longer have the luxury of just sitting and watching a whole program on T.V. My bed is always filled with one or all of the kids stealing my blankets and using my pillow. The windows are smudged 10 minutes after I clean them and I am never caught up on laundry. And I am enjoying and savoring every single second of it!! I love my life and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Catching up..

I have been wanting to blog for awhile. It seems like it is all feast of famine when it comes to blogging with me. I either have nothing going on and therefore, nothing of note to blog about; or my life is so busy that I have no time to blog. It has been one of those weeks.

The day before Reece was born, Lauren had a field trip to the Tree House Museum. I so was not in the mood to go. I was contracting, my back and ribs hurt, and I was so tired. But I did realize that I have only a few years left where Lauren will even want me to show up at her school. Soon she will be soooo embarrassed by her mom who still wears converse. So I pulled it together and went, and I am glad I did. I love my little girl and it was fun to see her interact with all her cute little friends.

Here she is with her friends Marley and Mikey.


They play so cute together!


Evan put this whole puzzle together without any help. I was so impressed! Way to go Buddy.

The day after Reece was born, Lauren had her performance of Alice in Wonderland. She played a Dandelion. I missed it, which was a bummer. I so wanted to see it. I was still in the hospital with my newest little guy. Chad said she did amazing. She knew all her lines and said them like a pro. She remembered all her cues. I wish it was on a different day. At the end, they gave her a mini Oscar with their names on it and I made sure Chad got Laruen some flowers.


Yesterday, Lauren's Kindergarten class did a little end of the year performance. Evan and I made it while Chad stayed home with Reece. She was so stinkin' cute up there!! I love watching her little mile stones and accomplishments. I want her to just have as much fun out of life as she can. Suck it up like marrow from a bone. She deserves all that life can give her.





Yesterday, Chad build a tool box with Evan. Evan loves tools and love to build. He is so proud of his tool box and carries it around everywhere.


When he was done, I wanted to take a picture of him with his tool box, but he wanted Lauren in the picture with him. It was way cute.



I need to remember that when they do have their moments when they argue, I am still a lucky mom. They really do love and care for each other. They have each other's back. Their relationship is rare and I really hope that they keep this kind of closeness through out their lives. And that in a nut shell is what has been going on in our lives. I love my kids and I am so grateful that I get to be their mom.

Every now and then, Heaven and Earth meet up for maybe just a moment. Times when you know that you are shaking hands with Heaven and your heart grows so large you fear it just might burst. I felt it holding hands with Chad across a beautiful alter and saw my future in his eyes. I felt love unfurl like feathered wings when I held Lauren for the first time in my arms, and again when I held Evan. And when I heard Reece cry out when he took his first breath, I felt my breath go out of me. I, once again, was in the company of Heaven. I really believe that you can not get any closer to the creative process then when a mother gives birth to a new little baby, fresh and innocent.

I started feeling contractions the day before Mother's Day. They would be about 1 hour apart from each other and they never got any closer. Which was both agonizing and a relief. In the roller coaster that is our life, Chad got laid off at the end of March and we were still waiting to hear back from work force services to see if I qualified for Medicare. On top of that, I was not a fan of my new doctor and was still on the hunt for one that I would feel comfortable with. So even though I had to deal with contractions every hour on the hour, I was a little relived that they didn't seem to get closer together. Then on Monday, we found out that I did qualify for medicaid and we were able to pre-registrar at Ogden Regional. On Tuesday, I met with Kathy Mark, a midwife at Circle of Life, and LOVED her. And on Wednesday, the contractions started to get closer and closer together. By 1:30, they were like 5 min apart. I took a hot bath and just laid down to relax to see if they would go away because Reece's due date wasn't until the 28th, so I had some time. But instead of going away, they got more intense. By 4:30, they were one right after an other. So Chad called his mom to come over while I laid in agony on the couch. Soon Chad was like, hey we should just get you over there and I will bring the kids back here. So we got in the car and made the two minute drive to Ogden Regional. We got there at 5:30, got a room at 6, where they told me I was at a 5. Chad said good bye to take the kids to his mom and get some magazines so he can have something to do while we settled in for the long wait. However, at 6:30, after my epidural, they checked me again and it turns out that I was complete! I started to cry, of course. You would think that with this being my 3rd, I would get over the nerves, but Chad wasn't there and I couldn't get a hold of him. They were wheeling in all of the equipment and baby extracting gear, and still no Chad. Finally, he walked through the door!! Oh my gosh I was so releaved, and just in time too. Because our mid wife followed right on his heels. 10 minutes later, Dr.Mark had put Reece, all purple and screaming, onto my belly and Chad was cutting the cord. I have never had a delivery that went that quick!! (I don't count the three days of contractions).

It was so nice and amazing to hold this little guy in my arms. All my fears of being able to parent three kids went out the window. My anxiety that I shouldn't have had that blue cheese salad or else I would ruin my baby forever, was gone. 10 fingers and 10 toes, big blue eyes and a healthy pair of lungs was laying in my arms.




Those two days in the hospital where such precious days. Just me and Reece. I love my little Reeces Pieces! He is so precious! 7 ibms, 20 inches long, born at 7:20 on May 11 2011. The kids just adore him. And lets be honest, who wouldn't.





My dad came by with Rita. I may not have my mom, but I have all of these people in my life. I use to worry that I was depriving my kids of a grandma, but I look around and I see all of these others who have steped in and have more then filled that hole for Lauren and Evan, that whole is over flowing with love. They have Rita, who they call Grandma, Chad's mom who is Grandma Nancy, and Chad's step-mom, our sweet sweet Mi Mi.



I love my dad. We gave Reece the middle name of Wesley after my dad.

Grandma Nancy holding Reece.

Auntie Shari came over with my cute nieces and nephew, Sammie, Rylee, and DJ.


She gave me this adorable little outfit, which turned out to be perfect since I didn't have time to pack anything for the hospital. I didn't have an out fit to take Reece home in.

I still can't believe that I have three kids! I still feel to young to be the mother of three!

I love my little guy. I spend my days trying waiting for those little moments where time slows so that I can hold him and kiss his soft cheeks. I relish the sounds of his grunts and even his crys..which sounds like a peacock I kid you not!! It makes me laugh every time he does it. I just love being a mom. Any sacrifice and hardship vanishes when I hold him in my arms. I am just so in love.

Movie Night..

Every now and then, we have a movie night where the kids get to pick the movie. When it's Lauren's turn to pick, it is always "Tangled" and Evan always chooses "Megamind." Sometimes they surprise me and throw in "Despicable Me" or "How to Train your Dragon." But for the most part, they reuse, reduce and recycle their choices for movie night. They are very green when it comes to their preferences. It started when Chad was out of town working for his Dad, and now it is a "thing" that we do. We push the couches together and make one big "bed" throw in some pillows and blankets, put on a movie and get all cozy. Nine times out of ten, the kids pass out after a half an hour and we let them sleep there the rest of the night.

They always look so sweet to me when they are asleep. I always think about the times through out the day where I could have been kinder and softer to them. They are just kids, exploring and learning. I always feel in my heart when I see them sleeping that I need to allow them that more often. You only have one childhood. Just once where you have no worries and no real responsibility. I need to make this small magical chapter last in their life before bills, mortgage, and other worries start to creep into their lives.

I am still learning. I feel like one of these days someone is going to find me out and say "HA!! You really don't know what your doing, your just making it up as you go along." And they would be right. I sometimes feel like being a parent is like someone handing you the keys to a race car without any instruction. The only advice is don't crash and burn. Then you have to try your hardest to navigate all the twist and turns of parenthood while trying your hardest to look like your on top of every thing. I am always grateful that these little ones seem to only remember the times you get it right, and not the times where you do end up crashing and burning.

And no matter how impatient or cranky I seem to be on one day or an other, they still circle my neck with there little arms and tell me "I love you Mommy." If we could only treat others the way a child does, I am pretty sure that the world would be full of peace and sand boxes.

(Please excuss Evan. He seems to wear chocolate a great deal better then he eats it.)