Future Buckeye

I'm from Ohio and proud of it. Even though I've lived in Utah for 14 years (um, that makes me feel old) I'll always be a Buckeye and it looks like Tommy is headed that way too. Of course at the rate he's growing he might be playing linebacker rather than cheering in the stands. Seriously, compare his six week photos to the ones of him at two and three weeks. This kid is filling out fast! Yay for Tommy!

(From certain angles, I see a "Shawver" look from Tommy. Anyone else see it?)

My Handsome Boys

Okay. Let's take a vote. Lots of people tell us Tommy looks so much like Quinn. There are some similarities, I'll admit, but to me Quinn looks like Quinn and Tommy looks like Tommy. What's your take on it?

Either way I'm sure handsome Tommy will grow to look more like his handsome Daddy as time goes by.

Funny Face

Six weeks old now and it feels like he's been part of our family forever already! It's so much fun to interact with him now because he smiles all the time and "talks" back to us. Nora is becoming increasingly interested in Tommy and vice versa. She loves to make Tommy smile and talk. Tommy sit on the couch and follows the bright blur of Nora activity around the living room. I tell Quinn that Nora's chattering voice is the sweet music that Tommy sleeps to. As long as she doesn't yell he sleeps right through it.

Hoping to get some good pictures of the kids together soon, but these should suffice for now.

Is this kid happy or what?

Two Weeks Old

When he's awake, he's really awake and alert.

This face is too cute!

At this point he's still swimming in his 0-3 month clothes.

Not for long!

Already smiling at two weeks!

He loves his bouncy chair! And he loves when Daddy talks to him!

Snuggling with nice warm Daddy after a meal of nice warm milk.

Ahhh...so comfy!

First Bath

Four days old and time for a first bath. Nora was very interested to see how this was going to happen so she got the best seat in the house and a little treat. I love to think back to how awkward we were when Nora was new. I feel like an old pro now (at some things)!

I'm talking both kids through the process while Daddy lends an

occasional helping hand and mans the camera.

"I'm so cold! What are you doing to me?!?!"

"That's better."

Home from the Hospital

I was really nervous to come home from the hospital. I didn't know how I was going to handle both kids at once and give them both the attention they needed and deserved. Once I got home though I felt so relieved to be away from the hospital. Thanks to the excellent care of the staff it can be difficult to rest there. (And I mean that in a good way.) And home is just - well - HOME.

I was also a little (*a lot*) sad that my mom wouldn't be around to help me adjust, but thankfully Quinn's mom Karen stepped in. For about a week we played zone - she mostly took care of Nora while I cared for Tommy. I slowly tried to phase Karen out so I could get used to the kids on my own. I'll admit there were a few tears when Karen had to get back to her normal life, due in no small part to post-partum depression.

I've got the PPD under control now, thanks for asking. I talked with my doc, we made some adjustments, and things are looking up. And how could they not be with this wonderfully awesome family I have?

And taking care of both kids at once? Like so many other difficult things in life I figured out I could do it by just doing it! We go slow, take care of the most urgent need first, and try to enjoy our time together.

First ride in the car

Isn't he just the sweetest little dark-eyed boy?

He's a pretty good sleeper and lets us get some rest too.

Doesn't big sister Nora have the most gorgeous smile?

She's so proud of Tommy - she announces to complete strangers,

"I have a new baby brother!"

Snuggle time with my two wonderful babies!

Meet Thomas Warren Foote

It was very important to me that Nora be the first one to meet the new baby. She was the first one in and the first one to hold him. It scared her a bit to see me in the hospital bed, but I reassured her that I was okay, and she was suddenly interested in tiny Tommy. She held him for about a minute, got bored, and said "Here Mommy. You can have him back." It's the same way about a month later. She's very proud of her new brother, but still not interested in holding him too much.

Giving little Tommy a big sister kiss!

Being cuddled by Grandpa Joey...

...and by Mema.

With Grandma Shawver...

...and with his namesake, Papa Shawver

We named little Tommy 'Thomas' after my father and 'Warren' after Warren G. Harding, President from Ohio and Warren Foote, one of Quinn's ancestors. Warren kind of started out as a joke - we wouldn't tell anyone the name before the baby was born, so Dad started calling him Warren. By the time he arrived, the name was stuck. Lucky it's a good one!

Labor & Delivery

WARNING: If you are sensitive to words like dilated, contractions, and umbilical cord, you should probably just skip this post.

After the drama of Sunday day, we rushed to the hospital to be induced. Of course the nurses and doctors do this every day so this is run of the mill for them. We were a touch more hasty. Things started smoothly though. I was dilated 2 cm. The doctor tried to break my water but it was too painful, so they started the pitocin instead to get the contractions moving along. Quinn and I watched a few episodes of Pawn Stars and tried to be patient. The contractions started getting pretty strong around 11:00 pm so the nurse called in the anesthesiologist for the epidural. About an hour and a dozen needle sticks later (not kidding - ouch!) I finally had the good stuff coursing through my veins. The nurse said my spine is oddly shaped and that's why it took so long to get the needle in.

The next couple hours are very blurry. I know the nurses came in often to check on us and do minor procedures, but Quinn and I slept through most of it. The contractions were coming fast and I was progressing very quickly. I dilated four centimeters in about 30 minutes. It was a little disorienting for things to progress so quickly. When Nora was born, she was in such distress that the nurses kept turning the pitocin up and down, and I labored for more than twelve hours. Not this time.

Around 2:30 am I started to feel like I really needed to push. Like really. An epidural is a weird thing because you can feel the pressure, but not the pain. And I really had no experience with it since the epidural for my first pregnancy worked during labor, but not delivery. Quinn worked really hard to distract me as I tried not to push, but finally I told the nurse that I had to. She checked me again and told me I was fully dilated - go time. I pushed about a dozen times, with my doctor there for the last three, and our boy was here!

We were all surprised by how big he was: 9 lbs 8 oz and 21 inches. More than a pound bigger than Nora! I got to hold him right away for a few minutes, but then medical personnel whisked him away to do their things.

As you can see in the pictures his nose and skull are a little smashed, but he's a pretty good-looking baby. All thanks to my wide birthing hips!

I don't really think anyone looks good in these hospital gowns...

Texting everyone a play by play.

He was pretty mad... It must be very disorienting.

He's a little smashed up, but a very handsome boy! And look at his round belly!

I think that's where all the weight is from because he is so skinny otherwise.

Grandma comes to visit, and leaves before the baby even gets here...

Tommy's due date was July 26th so my mom, Marilyn, flew in the 21st just in case things started happening early. No luck there. The due date came and went. We did all the things you're supposed to do to try to induce labor, including getting an induction massage from a professional. As the days went by though it became clear that I would be going with the scheduled induction time - 7am Monday, August 1st.

Unless you've been pregnant in July, there is really no way to understand the discomfort. No amount of air conditioning can stop the sweating. No amount of sleep can alleviate the exhaustion. This pregnancy was a lot harder than my first - more sickness and more fatigue. But then again, I did have to keep up with Nora this time. It's really lucky Mom was here because she was a big help with Nora. Mom has a lot more stamina than me, especially stamina for shopping. I felt bad that on every shopping trip we would just go to one store, and then I'd have to come home and rest.

Fast forward to Saturday, July 30. Just after everything had settled down for the night, Mom told us she was feeling some numbness in her legs. With no idea what it could be, we decided to see how she felt in the morning. It was bad enough in the morning that she decided to go to the ER. Okay, I'm freaking out. After hours of tests, she was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre disease, a disorder of the nervous system which causes numbness and paralysis. It's not permanent, but it can get worse fast, so the doctor said she needed to go home right away. Of course I'm thinking that she can't leave yet - I need help with the baby! You just got here! I want my Mommy! The less selfish part of me is thinking that the doctor is absolutely right - she needs to go home and get treated before she's unable to travel.

Plans were quickly made for my dad to fly out and travel back with her to Ohio. At this point, we were figuring that Mom and Dad would come and go without even getting to see the baby. I decided to try something drastic: I called my OBGYN and asked him to move up the induction. Maybe a simple question like that doesn't seem so drastic, but it made me nervous. My doc and I never really clicked - he's efficient to the point of seeming not to care and I was really spoiled by the midwives that treated me during my first pregnancy. Anyway, I explained a little bit of the 'family emergency' and he reluctantly agreed to induce me 7pm Sunday night, twelve hours early. Maybe an insignificant difference to some, but it would probably mean my parents would at least get to see the baby before they went back to Ohio.

We quickly finished packing and sped off to the hospital...

Nora sure loves to fish!

Nora is very fun to go fishing with.  Even if we aren't catching any fish She still has a blast.  She is perfectly happy catching a chunk of mossy slime.  "Look Mommy I caught something!"
You sure have to be patient though.  She gets the line tangled up every cast...

Planting Our Garden

Today was all about the yard and garden.  We got our front yard looking perfect then started on the garden.
The process of tilling has taken three days. We borrowed a tiller where the blades were in front any the tiller moved forward. Unfortunately our soil is clay and the tiller didn't get more than about two inches below the surface. I  spent the last two evenings turning the whole garden area over with a shovel so the tiller could get down a bit further. So when I finally got around to tilling this morning, it went smoothly and quickly.
Katy planned out where everything would go and it all went in within about two hours. Nora helped me plant the rows of corn. I would point and she would drop them approximately in the right spot. While she was eating her lunch she bragged about what a "good dropper" she was.
We got the last few plants in the ground right as the first raindrops started to fall. Talk about good timing! By the time we got all the gardening things back in the garage we were soaked which was very nice. We sat together inside the garage and watched the thunderstorm and enjoyed the cool breeze.
Life is good.

The Great Outdoors

Ever since the weather started to get warmer, Nora wants to spend all her time outside...

...even if it's raining.

We spend a lot of time at the neighborhood park and pond, playing and watching the duckies.

Nora loves to fly her Buzz Lightyear kite with Daddy. Isn't she tall?

Daddy helps her get started, and then it's all Nora.

Easter Egg Hunt

I call this the 'Monkey Trap' vase.

"Help me, Daddy!"

Mmmm... candy!

Lots of fun toys and treats

"Cool, dude" is what she says anytime she tries on glasses.

Coloring Easter Eggs

Nora is 2 1/2 years old, but we've never colored Easter eggs with her before. She thought it was a wonderful tradition, and Mommy thought it was a great way for her to get some protein in the mornings.

She dipped her finger in the undiluted food coloring.

Everyone is helping.

Nora was trying to be careful, but usually dropped the eggs from a few inches up and splashed dye everywhere. Oh well, it cleaned up just fine.

Eager to spend time with Grandma and Pa Shawver

At Cafe Rio. Mom and Dad always want to go to the Rio when they're in town. And I don't blame them. Let's face it - there's nothing as good in Lima or surrounding area. Sweet pork, creamy cilantro dressing, fresh made tortillas. Great, now I'm hungry.

Snuggle-bug and Papa watching Tangled