Chloe

Well, she's here and we are SOOOOOOOO excited about it!
I wasn't due until the 3rd of October, so we weren't totally ready to be heading off to the hospital, but for those of you who know me, not being ready, really was us being pretty ready (does that even make sense?!) :)
Thursday I had a doctor's appointment in the morning and we were going to discuss being induced on Sunday due to some shortness of breath and a racing heart, but for some reason I just didn't feel right about scheduling the appointment. I really wanted the baby to come when it was ready, not when I wanted it to come (and trust me, that was sooner than later!)
So at my appointment my doctor "scraped" me and I didn't feel good at all after that. I went and crashed at my in-laws for a little bit. My back started hurting so bad I thought I must have tweaked it or something.
After a little pampering from my wonderful mother-in-law I headed home to get the boys down for their naps. That was no easy task with my back hurting so bad and then I thought I started to feel some contractions.
Well, I noticed that my contractions were pretty close together so I decided to watch them. (This was at about 2:00 p.m.)
I tried to take a bath to help with the back pain and then realized that maybe I was having back labor! (duh!) I called my mom and she confirmed what I thought but I still didn't want to call Seth yet, I wanted to me sure.
He called a little before 4 and I am glad he did. I thought he could just finish his day out and then we could go to the hospital then. I didn't want to go too soon, my parents were still driving up from California and were still a few hours away.
Well, wise Seth came home right away and we called his parents to let them know and it's a good thing we didn't wait any longer because they had just gotten into the car to leave town!
Needless to say we got to the hospital at about 5 and the nurses yelled at me for waiting so long...and to tell you the truth, I was mad at myself too, the contractions were frequent and strong!
My mom got to the hospital about 20 minutes before the big moment and I was so glad she made it.
Chloe came to us at about 7:30p.m. and it was a very special experience. The doctor was great. He pulled her out in such a way so that I was the first one to see what the gender was.



Overall it was a good delivery, other than having to have 4 different people come in and try multiple times to get an IV in me!!!
Chloe and I are doing great and loving life. I think that we are both glad she's out. She was 8.2 and 21" long, but still very petite and dainty, just as any little princess should be.
She loves her dad and his warmth best. It is one of my favorite things to see her snuggled up in his arms and see him beaming as he holds his little girl.

This was my boys with Grandpa M while everyone else was at the hospital with me. They had the time of their lives playing trains, eating fruit snacks for dinner and then crashing on the couch. And yes, that is a floor mat on James. Hey...whatever works! :)

After a fun night with Grandpa M they got to come the next day to meet their sister. They were very cute. Sam just loves her and loves to give her kisses and tickle her. James is warming up slowly. Very slowly. He is very concerned when she cries, brings her binkies, and loves to send her flying when she is in the swing!
Their visit to the hospital didn't last too long. They soon got bored and started finding interesting ways of entertaining themselves! Boys will be boys, and that's why we love them! :)




After one quick stop...(a dad's gotta get his little girl something!)

We are home now and loving it. It is definitely different having 3. We are trying our best not to feel overwhelmed and give everyone the time they need. I think this is a balancing act we will be working on all of our lives!

The BIG No 2

Well, it's about time! :) Big Mr. James finally turned 2! :) We had a fun time planning and having his little party. We of course had to have a No 2 pencil party for him. It was fun. From his pencil birthday shirt, to banner, to cake, to pictures...it was pretty cute.
We just had a nice time with just us fam, and that was just fine. We had cake, presents, and played with ballons.





James scored a fun magnet game, puzzle, book, pez, Buzz ball, and of course, his first pair of hockey skates! :) We are excited to try those out this week! :)




I am glad that he is finally 2. He is so big and advanced in all that he does that people couldn't believe he wasn't at least 2, so this will be easier to explain! :)

24

Well, we finally did it. I don't even remember what got us started on it, but we finally broke down and watched the seasons of the TV series "24". It was fun. It ended up being a really good thing to do that kept Seth and I "busy" as I have not been up to "doing" a lot with this pregnancy.
We started it in the end of July on our vacation to Bear Lake. We had Netflix up there and that was really convenient. When we got home we didn't have Netflix, but found out that our good friends across the street had most of the seasons.
Needless to say, we breezed through them and got quite the reputation from those who heard about it. We haven't been doing much else, and we've had some pretty late nights, but it was fun.
I am just glad we had a fun time watching it together and it definitely helped these past month(s)- actually just about 7 weeks for the 8 seasons...I don't even want to calculate how many hours that was!- pass a lot faster! :)

Smarty Pants

Seth asked Sam if he would share something with him. He said no. Then Seth asked if he would share with his trains. He said no. Then Seth asked Sam if he would share with Santa and Sam shouted, "yes!"
How do they know so young?! :)

Post Labor Day Relaxation (A last Who-raw before the baby)

We decided to take our Labor Day vacation a week late this year and it was a great decision.
We always love to go up to Bear Lake, but we tend to be the ones who love to go when everyone else isn't there...and what a difference a week makes. Labor Day is usually so packed, and just by waiting one week there was hardly anyone there AND it was fall weather! :) My favorite.
We had a blast doing our usual....Seth getting a fun break to video game it up, the boys getting to play with their "Bear Lake Toys" and swing, and me getting to work on projects I've brought up.
The weather was perfect for me. I am a fall girl. It was raining and cold the first day and then just cool the next. I loved that we had to wear actual shoes and sweatshirts.
One of the best things about this trip to Bear Lake was that the boys really remembered it and got really excited when we told them where we were going. When we asked Sam if he wanted to go, he said, "Oh, can we, can we?!" It was so cute.
While we were there everything was "Bear Lake". From the Bear Lake swings, to the Bear Lake toys, to Bear Lake beds, to Bear Lake park...it was cute.
They love the town park and we had to spend some time there too!






We had a great time watching the deer out back. We had a bunch this year and the boys loved seeing them each morning and evening. Dad taught them how you could chase them and see them run and jump high. The picture is bad because my camera is on it's way out (too many encounters with water, slobber and being dropped), but in it there are about 12 deer sprinting for safety as the boys came running out, excited to see them. (Don't worry, we only did that a few times!)

We are just so grateful that we have a place like the condo to go to. We are so blessed that we can just get in the car and go and feel like we got away without it having to cost us a fortune....especially now since my parents are moving from California and I'm sure our trips there will decrease big time.

Anyone for Hockey?!

Sam started hockey back up this week, and so did Seth, so I guess it's back to our multiple trips to the rink each week.
Sam was VERY excited to start hockey again and we were excited to see that he hasn't lost a step.



James was VERY sad that he couldn't be out there with Sam and Dad on the ice, so we stripped Sam when he was done and tried to dress James. We put the helmet on wrong, scared him, and it was all down hill from there. Also Sam's skates were too small for James, so that didn't help any. I guess next week for James birthday he will be geared up and ready to go! I think he will do better if Sam is actually out there with him at the same time. I am a little nervous about that, but at the same time, I can't wait to see how cute he is out there.



I had to snap a few shots of how the boys entertain themselves during Seth's hockey games! It was SOOOO funny and most of the people around us thought so too...that is MOST. We had to switch sides half way through the game because there were a few people who didn't "appreciate" their energy. We usually don't have a problem with that, but this was the summer league All-Star game and there were tons of people there.




So, here's to a fun season of hockey and that everyone has fun...especially me... the one who has to pack, monitor, wash, and clean up all that fun each week! :)

Go Cougs!

This is our third year having season tickets to BYU football and it has proved to be a lot of fun. It is a great date for Seth and I, even though it seems every other year I am about to pop in my pregnancy! :)
We LOVE LOVE LOVE college football and it is even more fun to have our team close by to cheer for.

At the mall earlier that day I was wearing my BYU shirt and an old man wearing a Notre Dame hat and shirt walked up to me, leaned in my face, and pointed to his hat. It was pretty funny. I love how into it people get!
I'm not sure how many more games I will catch this season, it will most likely be Seth and his dad going to the rest, but I am glad I got at least one in! :)

Like Mother Like Son

I have had really bad restless legs with this pregnancy, so one of the things that really helps is to massage my feet each night for a really long time before I go to bed.
I had to get up during one of my "sessions" and I came back to my spot being taken by this little guy! :)

Cute little Sam had gotten right where I was with his feet on the massager, just like I do.
I love how they just pick things up and mimic everything you do....it's a little scary too at times, but usually, just plain cute! :)

#2

Seth got a fun surprise this last week. Sister Atkins, one of his converts from his mission, was out visiting and we got to spend some time with her. She is a HOOT! Talk about a true southerner at heart. She has the thickest, richest accent and great sayings and phrases! She calls Seth "Shoog" (short for sugar). It is the best. We love to keep the messages she leaves him just to listen to her talk.
She calls Seth "#2". His companion he was with when he found her is "#1". I think she loves Seth the most and just loves to rub it in, it is fun to watch!
There are always those few people who really define your mission and Sister Atkins is that for Seth. It was fun to see her after all these years and see where and who she has become.

The Prophet Said to Plant a Garden.....

I have planted various gardens and not yielded a thing! This year was going to be different...and thankfully it was! Although I lost over half of my plants to our freakish Utah weather, I tried my best with what survived!
My "garden" ended up consisting of 1 tomato plant and 2 peppers. I am kind of glad that was all that made it because with the extreme heat we've been having and being pregnant, I didn't take care of it as well as I would have liked.
....but after all that....I got 2 tomatoes so far! :) I am so happy!

Happy Birthday Mr. Sethery

We had a fun day for Seth on his birthday. The boys and I went and had to get some "party horns" because that is what Sam said you had to have to have a birthday party. We also picked up a small cake that the boys couldn't wait to devour!
Since Seth always just buys whatever it is that he wants, he is a tough one to surprise, let alone shop for. So I thought it would be a cute idea to finally frame our Star Wars pictures from Disney World and give those to him. (Every time we go to Disney World we take a shot of our faces in a Star Wars theme) So I went and got some nice frames, put the pictures in, and wrapped them up.
Well, when Seth opened his present he said, "really?" (He didn't get that I was trying to frame them for him so that we could display them.) Then he asked, "how much did this cost me?" I of course, being pregnant and emotional try to hold back the tears as I realized that my idea backfired.
Well, I had to go upstairs to "collect" myself. Seth went upstairs later, saw the new bedspread I had picked up (which is blue-his FAVORITE color) and said, "now THAT'S a birthday present!"
That figures! :) We had a good laugh about it. Needless to say, I will probably still try to surprise him, and it will still probably backfire every time, but hey, we've got a good streak going, why blow it now?! :)

A Vacation from my PROblems!

One of my favorite all time movies is "What about Bob?" I love his "vacation from his PRO-blems" and so that is exactly what I took.
Seth took the week off of work and we headed up to Bear Lake. It was such a wonderful trip. We just went up and relaxed and recharged. Our boys got sick at the beginning (Bear Lake trips and sickness have seemed to go hand in hand for us), but things got better.
I have had such a difficult time with this pregnancy. Both physical and emotional. I am not one to ever admit I can't do things, or not stay up on things, but that is exactly what has been going on, so it has been very humbling. Before our trip, when my parents were still in town, Seth and my dad gave me a much needed blessing. I am so grateful for the priesthood. I am grateful that I can ask for a blessing, have a worthy husband to do it, AND receive council and comfort from my Heavenly Father.
I am also grateful to have a place to go like our condo to get away from everything, re-evaluate and re-prioritize my life.
Seth and I came back happy and we had some great conversations. He has been the best husband and friend ever. I love him and and thankful for all he does and continues to do for me, especially now when I am not exactly carrying my share.