Our Blondie Turns "5"!

Jesse and his "Lego Power Miner" cake!

As a parent, the question, "When did you get sooo BIG?" crosses your mind just about everyday. I look at Jesse and I wonder to myself, "When did his legs get that long?" "When did he stop calling me Mama?"

Time never stops, and I guess the growth of all things human continues as well. Which obviously is common knowledge, it's just shocking when you see it happening to your own kids.

Jesse turned 5 on May 11th and we had a very fun party for him at Bouncin' Off the Walls. Here are some of the cute pictures of his special night!

Catching Up!

I celebrated my 33rd Birthday with my family on April 16th! Dan went to Olive Garden and bought one of my favorite desserts...Lemon Cream cake! It was very yummy!

Danny and I celebrated our 13th anniversary with our boys on April 19th! We made a three coarse meal....this was the first....artichokes! The boys had never tried them before and I think they liked them because of the whole process of eating them and the "surprise" in the middle.

James participated in his 2nd grade poem play. He recited a poem about flying called "High Flight" written by a WWII pilot, which was very fitting since his Great Grandpa Evans was a WWII pilot! Our parents and my sisters came to watch, and it was really incredible how much information these young kids memorized. Most of them had memorized four or five poems including the Gettysburg Address! I was very impressed.

Jesse came in my room the other day, and I snapped this pic of him and Tuck! I thought it was quite precious.

Jesse took this picture of me with Tuck. Jesse loves my camera, and if I leave it where he can reach it, he is sure to sneak off with it and take pictures of very random things, like the T.V. or his foot. It's actually quite funny to look at the pictures he takes. He has a very interesting perspective on things!

Keep Moving Forward...

Hello, again. I am slowly returning to feeling almost normal. I'm functioning on a little more sleep and I feel a schedule slowly starting to emerge in our new life. I've got the feedings down, I can recognize the signs of all the different cries, and I'm feeling a bit more motivated to get out into the world and socialize a bit. Tucker is a really good baby. And I promise I'm not just saying that to sugar coat my blog. He really is. I think the hardest part of becoming a parent for the third time, is dealing with the feelings and emotions of number one and two. Of course they love their new brother, but they can't help but feel that mom and dad are completely preoccupied. Jesse has reverted to throwing himself on the floor and throwing two year old tantrums, and James had disappeared behind his Ipod and his DS. I keep telling Dan that this too shall pass, and that if we make a special time for each one of them everyday, that we will discover a new norm. It's just finding the time that is hard. I feel like I am always feeding or changing Tucker, and when he is asleep, I am trying to get neglected chores completed. So, I am feeling a little tattered. It's hard to feel like you're being pulled in four different directions, by so many people who have real needs, but you just don't know who's needs are more important. So, I'm asking all of you wise mothers out there, do you have any words of advice on how you find the time (and energy) to spend quality time with each child or anything that we can do to make this transition time a little easier on us all?

A Short Update...

Things around here have been so busy that I haven't had time to post anything....or get dressed before noon....or leave my house....Wow! We forgot how time consuming a newborn baby is!

And how much laundry one tiny person can make!

But, here are some updated pics of our little cutie...more to come when I figure out our new schedule!

Hello, World!

Hooray!

Here He Is!

Our cute, little Tucker William was born on Friday, March 12, 2010 at 5:33 a.m.!

He weighed in at 9 lbs. 4 oz...if you can believe it!

And he is 22 inches long!

He is so sweet, and we are enjoying every moment with our new little guy!

We're Waiting.....We're Waiting....Hurry Up Already!!!!

Yesterday I went to my doctors appointment, fully expecting that my body had made some sort of progress. I have been having small contractions here and there, muscle spasms, the regular soreness and aches. I thought for sure something was going on down there.
But no!
The doctor chuckled and said that I was at a whopping "0" but that I was half way thinned out. Well, at least I'm thinning somewhere.
It's a weird sensation to feel like a walking time bomb. Everyone is afraid to take you out in public because you might create a tidal wave in the middle of a movie theatre or restaurant.
My boys have been the best, because they ask me how I am doing minute by minute. James will come in to my room first thing in the morning and ask in his chipper little voice,
"Has your water broke? Did you have any contractions? Did you sleep at all last night?"
These questions continue after breakfast, then right before I drop him off at school, and it's the first thing he says when he returns home in the afternoon and so on, and so on.
I asked him the other day why he is so concerned and he answered quite truthfully....
"I'm just so excited to see my cute little brothers face, and I get to have a sleep over with Kait and Carly!"
Poor Danny is just ready to get on to the next phase! I think he listens to me moaning in my sleep and probably thinks, "OK. I want my regular wife back." Plus, as he says, the older you get the more nervous you are. I guess I've never thought about how it must feel on his end of things. Watching your spouse balloon up, full with your child, and you have no control over how she feels or what the outcome will be. I've never had to watch him go through significant physical pain, and the thought of that makes me feel a little helpless. It's hard to not have control over situations...at least for me. I'm a bit of a control freak.
Hence, the reason that all of this waiting is driving me insane!
So, hopefully within the next three to four days, I will have good news to share!

Random Thoughts at the End of a Pregnancy...

*I am almost 39 weeks!
*I am to the point where everything below the waist hurts. This is the part of pregnancy that one magically forgets about!
*Yesterday was my last day at work. It was really hard!
*The kids made me cards that said funny things like,
"I hope the baby comes out rite." and
"I hope I love the baby!"
*But they also said really sweet things, like,
"I don't want you to go."
*I love working with kids, and I will miss them so much.
*None of my pregnancy clothes fit. It's really sad when your fat clothes don't fit over the bulge!
* I shall live in yoga pants and sweats until Tucker decides to come!
* I've decided that men become better at everything the older they get.
*Dan is such a patient dad, and sometimes when I listen to him talk to our boys about life lessons or hurt feelings, I wish all kids could have a dad like him.
*He has been my biggest support the last 9+ months!
*Ruby red grapefruit is so delicious....
*Laundry never ends...
*I love trashy tabloid shows like Entertainment Tonight, but if I see one more segment of John and Elizabeth Edwards sex scandal, I might blow up my T.V.
*How is it that politicians are supposed to be our brightest citizens, but they are dumb enough to make sex tapes? I don't get it!
*Wow, I've really strayed far off the subject!
* So, I will leave you now with all those wonderful thoughts in your head! I've got to go play Super Mario Bros. with Jesse!