So much has happened since I have last blogged. Ryan was born November 1st 2018 at Memorial Hermann Hospital. We witnessed so many blessings. He was born a "Pink Tet" baby so he wan't blue when he was born, he was a beautiful pink color, and they were able to stabilize him quickly. We got an hour with him as a family(which we were told we most likely wouldn't get any time before they had to take him to the NICU) so that time with him is one of my favorite cherished memories from the day he was born. Ali Howell from our ward came and was our photographer that day, and I can't even begin to describe how grateful I was that she captured all of the precious moments from that day. I can't look back at the slide show she made without sobbing, to this day.
We asked one of the really experienced NICU nurses if tet babies are usually discharged when their moms and she said rarely if ever. So I was feeling really sad that last evening, knowing that the next day I would most likely have to go home without my baby. But I kept praying for a miracle. That next day as the team made their rounds the Neonatologist said that from their end Ryan was doing well and was ready to go home, it just needed to be cleared with Cardiology. One of the fellowship students came around and when I asked her about him being discharged she said that he would need to stay. However, later that morning one of the pediatric cardiologists came to us and told us they felt like he was ready to go home. He would just need follow up care until it was time for his repair. I can't even being to explain the feeling of joy that I felt hearing that news! I knew Heavenly Father had heard and answered my prayers and I was elated at the idea of getting to take my baby home with me and not having to be separated from him!
Ryan had his surgery at Texas Children's Hospital, performed by Dr Carlos Mery, on February 27th, 2018. He was almost 4 months old. Everything went really well and he was able to come home 5 days later. I can't even begin to tell you the feeling of relief and the lifted stress now that we are on the other side of that! We felt so uplifted and strengthened by the prayers of so many and could feel that there were also angels on the other side who were with us during that difficult and stressful time. Ryan is doing so well and if I wasn't reminded by the little scar on his chest, I honestly wouldn't even think much of it anymore. We are so grateful things went so well!
We ended up selling our home in Texas back in May and moving to Utah! It was kind of a journey as far as finding a home there, and there were a couple that fell through, but ultimately Heavenly Father knew where we needed to be and we ended up with the most beautiful home in a quiet new little neighborhood in Riverton. We are about half the distance between my parents' and Joe's so things worked out really well! We are loving our home and loving getting to know the people that live near us!
Brooklynn is about to start Kindergarten in a little over a week, and Madison starts preschool in 3 days, on Wednesday August 22nd, 2018. She is getting excited and I hope she loves going! It's crazy to me that our kids are already this old! I literally feel like they were just babies yesterday!
Brooklynn is such a good kid! She is a wonderful example to her sister and will be to her brother. She is a good listener, she's responsible, she loves learning, and loves to craft. She will make something out of anything she can get her hands on. Lately she has been taking boxes from things being mailed to us, and she will color and decorate them. The other day she and Madison were out picking leaves off the neighbor's tree and gluing them on the box. ha ha! Those girls are best friends one minute and fighting like cats and dogs the next. Some days I think they are literally going to drive me crazy! Brooklynn is learning to count to 100 on her own, and she's working toward an ice cream cone when she can do it all by herself! She just went with Joe and climbed the rock wall at the gym(Lifetime Fitness) today for the first time. She isn't afraid to try new things. We just closed out the swim season almost here in Utah and last Friday she and Madison were jumping off the high dive. There were so many older kids saying "if that little girl can do it, then I can!" They would climb the ladder, look down, and then turn around and climb right back down the ladder. Madison would climb up, look down, and jump! They are both really good swimmers. When Joe told me last summer he was going to teach them how to swim I doubted his ability, but he really has done a great job. They both LOVE to swim! We spend a portion of almost every weekday at the pool.
Brooklynn and Madison wanted to share a room when we moved and so far they are loving it. Although when they fight I will hear Madison tell Brooklynn "Fine! Then you aren't coming in my room!" and Brooklynn gets all butt hurt and starts crying and comes to tell me that Madison said she's not letting her in her room. Madison is stubborn and strong willed, and Brooklynn is a total rule follower, obedient, pretty mild tempered, and wants to make sure everyone else is following the rules. They are both smart and easy to teach, and they can get along with other kids really well. They love when they make new friends at the park or the gym and love to play with their cousins.
Madison has gotten over some of her stubborn dislikes like hating the way her underwear felt under her pants, wet clothing, and socks. She used to literally freak out every time she would put her underwear on. Now it doesn't bother her anymore. She used to throw an absolute tantrum and have to change her clothes if she got them wet at all. Now she'll let it dry if it happens outside or she'll get the blowdryer out and dry it if we are home. She has also been a huge texture person and would only wear certain clothes or she would freak out that something was too itchy. She aggravates Brooklynn all the time and makes Brooklynn cry a lot more than Brooklynn makes her cry. She is a spitfire but can also be super helpful and sweet. She's usually right by my side while I'm making dinner. She loves to help and she's usually the first one to say what a good dinner it is and to thank me. One of her chores is to unload the silverware from the dishwasher and I can usually get her to do it without whining if I turn a song on for her. She drinks water like a camel and carries a little water bottle with her almost everywhere she goes. She loves to be with her sister and repeats so much of what Brooklynn says, and sometimes I'll just sit and listen to the two of them playin together and I just laugh to myself because they are so funny. Madison loves riding her bike, or being outdoors and she's a really good listener and usually follows through with things really quickly. She's usually the first one to get in the shower and get washed off and dressed because she's able to get in and stick to the task. Sometimes it's easy for Brooklynn to get distracted. It's fun to see these two girls that are raised in the same home by the same parents, and yet they are so different in so many ways because of their little personalities and the way that God created them. We sure love them both so much, as well as our little man!
Ryan is growing up WAY too quickly. He has started crawling, has like 6 teeth popping through all around the same time, pulls himself up to standing by holding on to the couch, end tables, the hearth, the bathtub, step stools, or anything else he can get his hands on. He fell down 3 stairs one day trying to follow Brooklynn down but she turned around and caught him, and he hasn't attempted the stairs since. He loves to crawl over and unplug the nightlights we have in the hallway like it's his job. He also unplugs Joe's cell charger without fail daily. He used to crawl to the plant and get dirt out pretty much daily until we decided to move the plant to Joe's office. He has this fake little whine he does when he wants something or when he's tired, and on the flip side of that he will also just scream at the tip top of his lungs if he wants something too. Sometimes I literally think I am going to go crazy listening to that scream over and over again. He still loves his bouncer and will jump in that thing for quite a while. He LOVES being outdoors and can go from super grumpy and whiny to happy and totally quiet if I just take him outside for a walk or to the park or even just to sit out in the grass or the trampoline in the back yard. He says "dadda" ALL THE TIME and refuses to ever let the word Momma cross his lips. He used to give kisses but now totally refuses and acts like he doesn't understand what I'm saying when I say "kisses!"
He fell out of his crib the other day because his mattress was too high. I had asked Joe several times to lower it, but it took him falling out for it to happen. I heard him crying-not a hard cry and went into his room and there he was, just chilling on the floor in front of his crib. Yikes! Thankfully it was on the carpet and he didn't get hurt at all. On the flip side of that he has bruises on his forehead on both sides from hitting his head on the hardwood floor or the tile. He gets crawling too fast and literally just face plants it on the floor sometimes! He's also started opening cabinets and drawers and has closed his fingers in the drawers quite a few times.-----Also something I've been asking his dad to babyproof!
He LOVES bath time and gets excited for nap time when he's tired and ready. He nestles his head in his blanket when I throw it up on my shoulder and kicks his legs and does this little whine/laugh because he is so excited to sleep. He's totally my child! Ha ha!
He still poops about 10 times a day! Little nuggets sometimes and big blow outs other times! I don't remember the girls ever pooping so much! He is loving being more adventurous with food now too though. He will eat baby food but does not like the stage 3 that has small chunks in it. HATES it and refuses to eat it. He will scream if we are eating until he gets to taste what we are eating too. It's like he's telling us he's over the baby food. ha ha! He's the sweetest little guy and will get excited to see me whenever I've been away for a bit. Even when I go to pick him up from the childcare at the gym. He smiles super big and starts kicking his legs in excitement when he sees me. He also will shake when he gets really excited about something and sometimes that has scared people because they don't know whats going on. Grandpa Bob always gets scared when he does it. It's just his normal though and I love that he gets so excited!
He reaches a little hyper point sometimes where he's in the giggliest mood and it's so funny to watch him just crack up at the girls and think they are the funniest people on earth. He loves to play peek a boo, and loves when I hold him and carefully jump on the trampoline. He laughs every time. He's just the sweetest little guy and I am so crazy about him. I couldn't imagine our family without him and thank Heavenly Father very often that he came to us.
He has started getting his hair cut every couple of weeks like his dad, and it's so funny to watch his reactions. He gives me this look like he's so annoyed that I'm interrupting his Baby Einstein 'old mcdonald'(only one he likes. He cries if another one turns on) with these annoying clippers on his head, and he constantly turns his head to look at me with that annoyed look while I'm trying to cut his hair. If I thought Joe was bad, it's 5 million times harder to cut Ryan's hair.
