better late than never...

introducting peter benjamin stork, born may 7 at 2:58 in the afternoon, weighing in at an enormous 9 pounds 1 ounce, and 20 1/2 inches long.  i successfully VBAC'ed (vaginal birth after cesarean, even though i think the 2 of you reading this know what that is), which is why i say 9 pounds is enormous, or as one good friend put it, just rude.  we mainly call him pete, although petey slips in every once in awhile, because it's unavoidable for me.  also petey b., which i think is adorable.  he is a very good babe, and we're all adjusting pretty normally, i think - mainly indifference from the older brothers, although they're getting more and more interested every day.  here are a few pictures from the beginning of his little life...

 what i loved most about the whole experience was how normal it

all was compared to how the boys were born...

 yeah, i rounded up when i said 9#1.  i can do that, i delivered him.

 sweet pete.

kathy and alex came to visit...

 going home

big brothers.

36 weeks... getting there!

yes, i could have smiled... i'm sorry, the baby has all of my brain power and apparently, it was too hard to take a decent picture and look halfway decent at the same time. better luck next time.  

at this point, the doctor said he isn't going to stop me if i go into labor, so it's all very up in the air.  so much so that a repeat c-section is sounding more and more appealing all the time.  it's very odd, not knowing when.  and the fact that bryan works the craziest hours and it isn't exactly easy for him to leave (or not sleep after a night shift) makes a scheduled event seem like the way to go.  but i can't do it.  for six years, i taught women how to deliver a baby- i should be able to do this myself.  we shall see...

majali illustrations

images courtesy of majalin on etsy

as i've been getting the nursery ready for this little guy, i've realized that i'm putting way more into it than i did with the boys.  i think there are a few reasons for it: pinterest wasn't a thing yet, i was into the "less is more" frame of mind since there would already be two babies around, and apparently i don't have enough to do now.  we've painted it a different color (i say we, i mean bryan + his wonderful mama), got a new crib (we gave one to my sister-in-law, who is due a week before me and liam's chewed his rails down like a beaver) and now i'm filling in with art and a few little extras.  three of those extras are prints from a swedish artist on etsy named maja lindberg.  i fell in love with the middle print, called reflection, awhile ago and thought these would be perfect for the nursery.  her whole shop is filled with sweet illustrations, mostly geared towards children's spaces.  love, love, LOVE.

32 weeks!

(i know, the position of my arm is awkward, but it looked gigantic at my side)

(i know, i have issues)

despite what people think, i still have a little less than a couple of months to go!  on a side note, it's 2012, people.  haven't we learned that it isn't okay to comment on the size of a pregnant belly?!  jeesh...  it really isn't offending me, i promise, i have a good amount of experience with pregnant bellies and don't feel at all like mine is enormous.  it's making the rest of my body feel about 85 years old, but that's just not anything anyone wants to read about.

32 weeks, a wonderfully active baby, two equally active 3 year-olds, and a waddle that would fit me right in with march of the penguins.  life is good.

a baby quilt

ever since my mom and i took a quilting class before christmas, i've been itching to make one for the new little one.  this last weekend, i got a chance to go to a fabric store that i could literally spend hours in.  my mom and i went in while poppy (my dad) walked around the block with the boys.  it was a little overwhelming, but i eventually chose what i wanted.  not finding what i wanted in the way of a pattern, i made one up.  i don't say that lightly, because i'm only halfway through sewing the top, but it's a very simple striped pattern, so i'm hoping there isn't much i can do to mess it up.  because my impatient self will find a way, if there is one.  here's the start of it, we'll see what comes of it...

it's a great picture, i know...

having fun with instagram

i've started trying to take more pictures, and this wonderful app helps me out tremendously, considering i am nowhere near a professional photographer.  i don't even think i'm near an amateur one.  here are a few from the past month or so...

 the plaza at sunset, a rare dinner out with bryan

 cutting out lots and lots of felt circles for a banner to hang in the nursery

(navy/kelly green/white)

the watercolor print for his room

 potty training!

(can you sense the sarcasm in the exclamation point?)

 making it look like we're starting them playing the piano already

another rarity: reading, sharing, sitting so close without combat 

and finally, something evil made its way into our home, hitting finn first

(this is a miracle drug.)

24 weeks!

here we are at 24 weeks!  we are viable, something that's probably only a big deal to former labor and delivery nurses.  i mean, it's a big deal to every mama, but maybe they aren't as aware...  ok let's face it, anyone who isn't a labor nurse just isn't as cool.  moving on.  i haven't really talked a lot about this little guy, mostly because my other little guys kind of require more attention at the moment.  there isn't much to say, except i love just having one in there! is that obvious? but actually, this is a harder pregnancy in terms of what my body is feeling.  lower back pain, lower pelvic pain (like debilitating), shortness of breath all the time, even though i don't feel like he's sitting that high, etc.  but he is so active, almost all of the time, especially in the evening.  because of that, i feel like i'm bonding more with him than i did with the boys.  i can't fully explain it, but with them, i had to figure out which one it was moving and i really wasn't always 100%, so for some reason, i feel like i wasn't able to connect as well with them.  obviously, it all changes once they're born, but this time around, i'm happy to be able to focus all on him.  him, who we're calling chester because liam told my mom he wanted his name to be sister and she thought he said chester.  my sister-in-law is due a week before me and they're calling her little one homer, so i think homer and chester go very well together.  

next up, painting the nursery and getting it ready. i'm planning on getting my DIY hands dirty, so i'll try and post some of those projects here.  maybe some watercolor, maybe some graphic prints on the computer, and definitely a felt circle garland to hang.  no theme, but lots of color!  right now, we're planning on light gray walls, and navy blue, kelly green, and orange and yellow accents - we'll see if it all comes together!

orange and green train party!

warning: lots o' pictures filled with orange and green coming your way.  

when we first asked the boys what kind of party they wanted to have for their third birthday, liam said a "percy train party" and finn said a "thomas train party."  well...  i'm all for doing what my boys want on their birthday, but i don't really like brands.  so we turned it into a train party.  then it somehow evolved into an orange and green train party because these are their favorite colors (their sheets on their beds are orange and green, and somehow they became the faves).  i liked this idea much more, so it basically ended up looking like an orange and green party and i put a couple of their trains on the table for good measure.  maybe i could say orange and green a few more times...  although it was just family and a couple friends, in our world, that means 20+ people, but with a little help from my in-laws and fantasia while i baked their cupcakes, we managed to have a pretty fun party.  (yes, i've gotten a few ideas from pinterest).

happy birthday, liam and finn!

 the spread...

although i had grand plans for a candy buffet,

bulk candy is $$$!!! 

 liam was quite content between clare and grace

and bryan was quite content drinking his orange cream soda

("it's just like drinking ice cream!")

 bring on the cupcakes!

 and the OCD...

finn: mom, wipe my fingers, i got icing on them!

 me and my loves

 my favorite picture of the night...

 you see this washcloth?

 this is what you do with it.

 a book from spencer and grace

 etch-a-sketches from molly

 and i don't want to brag or anything... but --

 the best presents by far... tricycles!

from mommy and daddy

 the smiles were endless...

and they haven't stopped asking to ride them since...

but it's 30 degrees outside and our door jambs are already a little torn up from them riding them around in circles last night.  looks like it's going to be a looonng winter, but luckily we have a few days coming up that will be warm enough to venture down to the park.  happy third birthday to these great boys!!

the fam

it's been a wonderful, exhausting, family-filled couple of weeks.  having my sister, her husband and their two kiddos here the week of christmas, bryan having off work (yea!!) for all of it, then working five in a row while i woke up every morning feeling like it was a little more like groundhog day every day, happy new year and the boys' third birthday party to end the madness yesterday.  it was a lot.  so i am going to go take a bath.  i will have a plethora of party pictures up soon (ish), stay tuned.  in the meantime, happy happy new year.