Summer Lovin'

I can hardly believe it's already July. Time is flying. I figured rather than a long narration of what we've been up to (and since not much has changed since the last post)...I'd provide a long list of pictures with captions! And just so you know...our new family picture in the heading of our blog is only temporary (whew...). I mentioned to Nathan that we didn't have a family picture that I liked of all three of us yet and he went to work with his photoshop skills. Nice job, honey. I will say it is actually pretty funny.

Kristie and Jake came to visit for two weeks! We had a blast together. We missed you, Wesley!

Jake and Sawyer doing 'knuckles' together. Jake loves that game. Sawyer's still indifferent.

On the 4th we went to this place where there are water fountains coming out of the ground. Jake and David were in Heaven. Sawyer was forced to enjoy a little of the action. (Notice that Nathan's idea of fourth of July attire is camo...typical).
Feeding Sawyer at the fountains. I promise there was no one around. Look at my wonderful husband providing us with some shade.

Sawyer's 4th of July shirt..."Born in the USA". I think he was mistaking my cheek for something else...haha.

The fam at Carl's ice cream

With Sawyer at Lake Ana

We pretty much hung out in his little blow-up cabana the whole time. I love this thing.

Alright so we were matching one Sunday and I had to take a picture. Sawyer's first 'play group' experience...as you can see he had a blast.

P.S.--If you want a birth announcement send your address to my email (jeskasmail@gmail.com)...I would love to send one to everyone!

Bad to the Bone...and other thoughts

For some reason I thought I would have more time to blog when I stopped working and started being a mom. I was wrong. Things are a little more difficult when you have a little baby on your arm 80% of the day. But I definitely wouldn't trade it for anything! I am loving my new job and can't imagine doing anything else right now. Here's a summary of what's been going on this past month or so... (if you don't want to read to the end I don't blame you...but watch the video Nathan made at the bottom! )

Nathan finished up his first year of Dental School! Hooray! Finals were a nightmare for Nathan...he literally studied for a week straight all day long. Although that is not much different than what he's doing now. He has to take the first part of his Dental Board Exams in July so his full-time job this summer is just that--studying. He's gotten pretty good at holding a baby and studying and eating all at the same time. Congratulations on a great first year, Nathan! We love you and appreciate all your hard work.

Sawyer came out of his 3 1/2 week check-up weighing 9 lbs 2 oz. I haven't measured his length in a while but he seems to be growing longer each day. At about 4 wks we had to move into 3-6 month sleepers not because he was too chunky but because we realized he couldn't stretch out his legs at night. We weighed him on our home scale the other day (6 1/2 wks) and he was 12 1/2 lbs! We're very proud of our growing boy. He pretty much doesn't do anything but eat, sleep, and poop. He struggles a little with the latter but rarely resorts to crying. And he loves his pacifier. At first I was a little worried about addicting him to the thing but frankly...it does it's job. If he ever gets a little fussy we pop it in and we're good. He doesn't have to have it all the time but he loves it when he gets it. I'm ok with that.

On Friday, May 29th we had the car packed for our cross-country drive and the house just about packed up as well. At some point during our errand running at 2 in the afternoon we realized that not only were we not going to get out until the following day (we had originally planned to leave the previous Wednesday) but that the car was cramped and hot and that we REALLY did not want to drive for the next 3 days. Half jokingly Nathan and I ran upstairs to the apartment and began searching plane tickets. Within 20 minutes we had completely changed our plans and purchased tickets for the following Monday! Hah! Talk about last minute! Now that the flight is over...we couldn't be happier about our decision. Sawyer was a champ on the plane and we were so grateful!

So for the past two weeks we've been in VA with my family and I pretty much get to sit around with Sawyer all day and hang out with my mom and Sydney. Pretty sweet. We can't wait for Kristie and Jake to get here on Thursday!!! Nathan goes up into the office at 8 am and studies until around 5 pm...poor guy. We do lots of barbeque-ing and I've been able to start running again! It's so nice to have all these hands that want to help with Sawyer all the time. He really has been such an angel baby...I'm terrified for my next child because this is too good to be true. Either that or we're in for some terrible toddler years! But for now I'm going to be grateful and enjoy it! He's starting to do the social smiling thing every now and then and it's so much fun!

I can already see this summer is going to fly by super fast. I hope you all are enjoying your summers as much as I am! We love you!


Syd took some family pictures for us the other day. Sawyer was a little sleepy but we did get a few cute ones. We'll have to try again another day. :)

We went to the temple the other day and Syd stayed outside with Sawyer...it was so weird to leave him for those 2 hours but he did great! I just love the DC temple!

Sawyer showing you how strong his neck is...
Alright so Nathan has been determined to put together a 'birth video' of Sawyer's big debut...and now that he's had a little more time it's finally here! (And while his sister Ashley gave him the idea when she posted her own daughter's birth video, which i loved--Feelin' Thelin, in case you want to follow the link on my blog--ours has got a little different feel to it...all I can say is...typical Nathan.)

We're Still Alive...

So we've hit the 2 wk mark...and we're feeling pretty good about it. After a long struggle with healing stitches, general breastfeeding discomforts, and mastitis, I am finally starting to feel like myself again. All I can say is, thank goodness for mothers. My mom was here for 9 days and took care of all three of us. My dad even came for a long weekend and did his share of running errands, fixing things around the house, and just helping in any way he could. I could not have survived without them! It was such a blessing for me to have them here. I was also blessed to receive dinners from several of our friends around here. I will forever have a greater appreciation for service in the way of prepared meals! This is the first time in my life where I was in need of them and they were so helpful! Thanks to the love and support of friends and family, we are still alive :).

As far as Sawyer is concerned, he has been so great! I know that babies are often mild and even-tempered the first couple weeks...so we have not disillusioned ourselves into thinking that he will always be this good...but we sure are grateful that he has been thus far. He pretty much only fusses when he has to poop or when he is hungry. He rarely bursts out into a full on cry and when he does it's short-lived. We're crossing our fingers that at least some of his attributes continue on past week 2. Sawyer had a check-up with his pediatrician at 6 days and rather than losing weight (as most babies do the first week), he gained 1/2 an ounce! I guess we know he's getting something when he eats!

While my parents were out here we figured it would be a good time to have Sawyer blessed, since a majority of Nathan's family is out here anyways. He was only 11 days old so we didn't want to do the public church blessing yet. We got permission to hold it at Nathan's sister Brooke's house in Mesa. It was a very intimate and sweet experience for our little family. And what a wonderful Mother's Day gift!

For the past 3 days we've been on our own. My mom left us more than enough casseroles to last the next couple weeks. And now that I'm feeling so much better...I'm almost ready to tackle this apartment and start packing things up. We're planning on heading out on May 27th or 28th, so that leaves me just under 2 weeks to get everything done. I'm so excited to go to VA for the summer...it will be nice to have my family around for a bit. I will admit that I'm dreading the 3 day drive with a newborn. Good thing they still sleep a lot. It will definitely be an adventure, I'm sure.

I think that's about it for now. Things are going well here and we are so grateful to have little Sawyer in our home. I can't guarantee that I'll post anything else before we move, so if not I'll see you all in VA! We love you and thanks again for all your support!

Sawyer's Blessing Day--May 10, 2009

We're starting to see more 'open-eyes' Sawyer...I love it!

Nathan's favorite thing to do with Sawyer...nap

I randomly discovered this picture on our camera card! Note the remote control in his left hand,
Nathan is having way too much fun with this kid already!

I just love the squishy sleeping face...

Our first official use of the stroller...a little trip to the mall

Sawyer Rafe Larson

Well the big day has come and gone...and it all went perfectly! We went in for our induction as planned at 3 am on Wednesday the 29th. After lying in bed for about 3 hrs trying to fall asleep, and maybe one successful our of sleep, I was pretty anxious to get the show on the road. For those of you out there who enjoy hearing the details of a labor & delivery story (I know I do), I'll give a brief recap. At 3:15 am we placed a prostaglandin gel to help ripen the cervix. At that time I was still only dilated about 1.5-2 cm. I knew this going in so I was planning on a fairly long day--hoping to deliver sometime in the evening on night shift with all the girls I work with. With the gels you spend an hour walking around and 3 hrs after the insertion you reevaluate and either place another gel or move on with pitocin. I had already told my doctor that if nothing happened with the gels I would rather go home than push it by breaking my water and committing myself before my body was ready. So pretty much within 15 min of putting the gel in I starting contracting every 1-2 minutes...and I'm not gonna lie...they were pretty intense. That hour I spent walking up and down the hallway seemed like an eternity. I had planned on waiting to get my epidural until after my water was broken so that I could really "experience labor" a little bit. Well by the time the nurse checked me again after my 3 hours and told me I was 3 cm I was like...that's good enough! Let's commit and let's get me an epidural! Haha! Wow...what I learned that morning is that my patients aren't lying--labor really does hurt! And that was just the beginning! I guess I'm not as tough as I thought I was. But I'm over it. That epidural was the best thing ever! I finally got to feel all the warm and tingly sensations and the feeling of relief that my patients always rave about! And I whole-heartedly agree! I can't describe how good I felt after I got that epidural and how nice it was to finally be able to rest for a bit. And I totally lucked out and my favorite anesthesiologist was on call that morning. He did a fantastic job placing it and even explained the whole procedure to Nathan while he worked (which Nate loved). Anywho...an hour later my doctor came and broke my water and said I was 3-3.5 cm. I then flew from a 4-8 cm in another hour (which I realize is totally common with second and third babies but pretty fast for a first...not trying to brag or anything :P ). And from 8-10 in the next hour. It was 11 am then and I knew that my doctor (who was not on call that day but who was so nice to come in special for me) was hoping to come deliver on his lunch break. The baby's head was low enough to start pushing but I was super comfortable with my epidural and totally fine with waiting for Dr. Walter to finish up at the office first (...actually this is done with pretty much anyone's first baby once they hit 10 cm...let the uterus continue to push the baby down for an hour or two so that you don't have to push as long). So he showed up shortly after 12 and we started pushing. 4-5 contractions later we had a baby! I seriously could not have been more pleased with the experience. I didn't quite make it to night shift (about 6 hrs too early, actually)...but it was so nice for it to go so quickly and smoothly. I don't know what I did to deserve such an amazing pregnancy and delivery but I am very grateful. Nathan loved the experience as well. And my mom and Kristie were able to watch from the side lines during the delivery (on I-chat!). Definitely a first for my doctor, he said...delivering on the world wide web! I was so glad they were able to be part of it in a way.

So our baby boy was born at 12:13 on April 29th. :D He weighed a whopping 7lb 15oz (small for my family but a pretty good size for a week early and bigger than we thought he would be). He's 21 inches long and has his daddy's big feet and hands and his mommy's blonde hair. We finally named the poor thing two days later. Sawyer Rafe Larson. In case anyone is wondering...Rafe is the British variation of the name Ralph. This little boy is, therefore, named after his Grandpa Schindler. We figured he had a better chance of being cool with a name like Rafe than with the name Ralph (don't worry...my dad agrees). We love him so much and are so grateful he is here with us. Nothing can describe the feeling that comes when you bring a child into the world. Even Nathan said to me the other day how surprised he was at how instantly he loved this baby. It is so true. I am so grateful to be a mommy. I love him more each day and am so excited to continue getting to know him.

Ok so that was not so brief but hey...now I've at least got it written down somewhere cause it'll be forever before I actually journal it. Recovery has been ok. I will say that for me, the recovery has been the worst part of the experience. I would much rather be pregnant for another week than recovering from childbirth. Nothing that I won't survive (I'll spare you the details) but let's just say I'll be glad when it's over. We came home from the hospital on Friday afternoon and we've been getting settled here. Sawyer has been such a great baby so far. He eats like a champ and pretty much only cries when he's got a messy diaper or he's hungry. I know this first week is not at all indicative of his future temprement but it sure is nice for now. My mom comes in town tomorrow and I can't wait! When I told her I was being induced on Wednesday she asked if I would be ok without her until Sunday. At the time I was like, 'of course! I'll be totally fine...we'll only have like a day and a half alone at home before you come...no problem'. I'll be the first to admit that my ego has been shaken and my mindset is changed--Hurry up mom! I need you! :) This mommy stuff is harder than I expected. Nothing like your own mom to teach you the way. I'm looking forward to her getting here.

Here are a few pictures...just the start of our new lives with Sawyer. It's a whole new set of adventures from here on out...Hearing Test--Nathan likes to call this picture "The force is strong with this one"

Here We Go...

Alright so it's 3 am and I've been trying to fall asleep for the past 2 hrs---it's not working. I can't stop thinking about all of the things that are about to happen. I'm officially 39 wks and I'm going in for an induction exactly 24 hrs from now. Why, you ask? Because I'm impatient...and because I can :). One of the perks of being an L&D nurse is that your doctor, whom you work with daily, is totally cool with inducing you a week early even for your first baby. (Sorry to all those out there who have had to suffer with an additional few weeks of pregnancy). In fact, he pretty much let me schedule my own induction. As much as I would have loved to experience going into labor on my own...I'm done waiting :). And with my mom coming on Sunday and only being here a little over a week...I'd rather hang out in the comfort of my home than sit in a hospital room with her for the entire visit. Nathan is more than excited for an excuse to get out of school for a few days (I think he's a little excited about the baby too). And I told my doctor that if my body doesn't seem to be ready for induction once we get started I'd rather go home as a 'failed induction' and try again later than push it...so don't worry, I'll be smart about things. So that's that. I'm now in panic mode. This whole time I felt so calm about everything...didn't expect to be nervous about labor and delivery at all...but I'll admit that as it's coming down to the finish, I'm a little on edge. I suddenly feel totally unprepared. And we have yet to come up with a name for our child. I hope seeing him will help me with that decision. I am going to try and cram as much cleaning/shopping/movie watching/relaxing/sleeping/etc into the next 24 hrs as I can. I'll let you know how it goes.

So that's it for the update. Hopefully the next post will be the joyful announcement of the birth of Baby Boy Larson. Here are just a few shots of the last couple weeks of my pregnancy. I have been so spoiled by all of the wonderful friends I have around me! The girls from work threw me another baby shower a couple weeks ago...and then my ward threw me one a week later. It has been so fun! I'm so grateful for everyone's generosity and willingness to serve. Thank you everyone!

Work Baby Shower at Tagliani's...

Me and all the other pregnant chickas in my ward!

An awesome quilt that Camille made me! Everyone helped tie it at the shower. I love it!

So creative! Fruit salad in a buggy! Great idea!

Quick Update

So I went in yesterday to have my amniotic fluid levels rechecked. They were significantly lower than last time. So for now it's smooth sailing...no bedrest, or induction (as much fun as it would have been to have him come early...it's probably best this way). We're re-checking them again on Thursday morning. But I'm sure we should be good now. I have no idea why they were so high two weeks ago. Who knows. I'll keep everyone posted, though. Love you all!

Mustache March & Easter Eggs

Just a few small things to catch up on. March was declared 'Mustache March' at Nathan's school and he was more than willing to comply with the new standard. For a few weeks he let his 'oh so thick' facial hair grow until he looked like a mountain man...and then for one entire week this is what I was living with ...
The school held a 'dental prom' called the "Odontoblast" (pretty clever, eh?). Unfortunately I had to work that night and couldn't go but it sounds like it was a blast. This was Nathan's inspiring attire that evening...
So that's what he's been up to. I, on the other hand, was not so sad to see March come to an end. Other than mustaches and dental proms...Nathan is anxiously awaiting the end of the school year. He's supposed to be done May 22nd and, at the moment, that seems a little too far away for him. I know he'll be so happy to be done for the year...and I'll be happy for him to be done, too. But for now, we just have to occupy our thoughts and time with other things--like the fact that within the next 3 WKS we'll have a new addition to our family! It's so weird to think that we're so close to having this kid...although my body feels like it's about time. :) I have loved my pregnancy and have been so blessed to be healthy...but let's face it, this last month is no fun. It's finally getting pretty uncomfortable and the anticipation is just killing me. I went in for an ultrasound at 35wks because we were worried the baby might not be growing so well anymore or that my amniotic fluid levels might be low. Turns out I have enough amniotic fluid to share with the entire neighborhood! In fact...it's borderline 'too high'. This poses a few extra risk factors for my pregnacy so I'm going to have my fluid levels checked again today and if they are higher I was told it's 'bedrest and an induction' for me. We'll see. So unfortunately I've been forced to put my running on hold this past week. (If you can even call it running anymore...more like a slow jog/walk). I've been so grateful that my body has allowed me to continue my exercise regime up until now. I will admit it's been a nice break to not have to spend the time exercising, but I do feel better when I'm able to get out there and break a sweat a few times a week. I guess we'll see how the ultrasound turns out today and maybe I'll be permitted to get in a few last minute jogs :).

(This is me about 35 wks prego 'post-run'...attractive, huh?)

So in my 'spare time' I've finally finished my baby quilt. I'm excited about it. I'm always amazed when they actually come together in the end. I've also been having to take an ACLS class for work once a week in downtown Phoenix. The timing kinda stinks but I guess it's a few extra hours of pay, right? I'm just hoping I get to complete it now seeing as I'll be 38.1 wks pregnant on my last day (the test day). We should make it, though. Anywho...here are a few more belly shots for you all. I'm definitely feeling larger these days. Sleeping has become a challenge. Yesterday Nathan was excited when he saw what I was wearing to church...he was like, "You look like an easter egg!". Haha...I guess it was appropriate for the day, huh? I have to agree...my belly does look an awful lot like a pink, polka-dotted egg. A very large one...

(36.5 wks)

(36 wks)

The baby quilt