Pictures From the Last Few Days

Here are a few photos from the past few days.  We are lucky to get a few pictures of her with her eyes open because she seriously sleeps about 22 hours a day!  I love it though - she is such a little snuggle bug.  I took her into the doctor yesterday and she was only down 4 oz from her birth weight.  She got an A+ report!  She had her first sponge bath today and did such a great job.  She cried for about 30 seconds and that was it!  Love her so much!

Look at that blonde hair!

{Thanks again for the towel, Natalie!!  She loved it!}

In other news, Olivia gave the thumbs up today!!  Little smarty pants.  She looks like a hot mess because she just woke up from her nap.  Plus, gone are the days {for awhile} of me spending 15 minutes french braiding her hair!  I barely get 15 minutes to shower and get dressed!

Thumbs up for popcorn!

Happy Tuesday from the Central Coast!

Good Morning!

It's a chilly morning out here on the central coast, so we are all snuggling up in front of the fireplace.  How could you not want to snuggle with this little love bug?!

Happy Tuesday from the Central Coast!

Who's Who??

My friend Sarah put something similar to this up on her blog and when I saw these two pictures of my girls, I knew I had to do the same!  Can you tell which of these pictures is of Olivia and which one is Sydney??  They are bundled up in the same receiving blanket and hat at the hospital!

You can babysit for free if you guess correctly!  ;)

Happy Monday from the Central Coast!

Sweet Sydney

I have tried to write this post about 4 different times in the last couple of days, but there is always something (err, a couple of someones) always in need of snuggling.  One of these days, I'll be able to put some thoughts down on "paper" but for now, I'm guessing what most of you want to see are some pictures and some stats.  So, here you go:

Sydney Ryann Michelson made her debut at 3:50 in the morning on Thursday, August 25th.  I checked into the hospital around 8:00 the night before.  My baby girls sure love to make me work at night!  I did this delivery naturally as well, but honestly agree that I was a little crazy for doing so.  Sydney was "sunny side up" {head down, but facing the wrong way} which made things a little lot more painful.  I'll do another post with more details {bet you can't wait} in a few days.  Sydney weighed 7 pounds, 13 ounces and was 20 1/2 inches long.

Mom and Olivia came to the hospital the next morning around 11 and the whole rest of the day was crazy.  We ended up shooting a commercial for the hospital {more details on that later as well} and were just exhausted by nightfall.  Fortunately, we were able to check out the next day after lunch.  It has been so nice being at home and being in a comfortable bed!  Sydney slept like a champ Saturday night, but last night was a little more difficult.  She is seriously SUCH a sweet baby and is so incredibly calm and laid-back.  Olivia is in LOVE with her and is constantly showering her with hugs and kisses and stuffed animals.  Sydney is such a trooper and just cuddles right up to Olivia.

The day I checked in to the hospital.

Sydney, only a few hours old.  {And, yes, I had already showered!}

First bath

Squishy face

Sisters!!

My sweet Sydney

Car ride home

First morning at home

Slumber party!

Snuggled up with Mama

Not sure when I'll get more time to post...hopefully soon.

Happy Sunday from the Central Coast!

She's Here

After a long labor, our new baby finally made her appearance (sunny side up) at 3:50 this morning. We are waiting on Nana and Olivia to get here before doing her bath and stats, but we did get her weight - 7 pounds, 13 ounces.

She nursed like a champ this morning and is now sleeping like a precious angel. So is her daddy (who was, again, a fantastic coach). 

We truly feel so blessed to have two beautiful, healthy baby girls to call our daughters and we are so excited to watch their relationship grow.

Keeping Ya'll in the Loop

So, this may be TMI for some of you, but...here goes.

We went up to my weekly doctor's appointment this afternoon and after a night and day of some contractions, I was between 3 and 4 cm dilated.  Our doctor gave us the option of going in to the hospital and having them do a contraction assessment or heading home to get a little rest and waiting for my contractions to be about 5 minutes apart.  We opted to go to Costco.  Upon getting home, my contractions have been about 5 minutes apart for the last 40 minutes or so.  We are going to have the dinner my mom and I have been fixing (Chicken Tamale Casserole, if you are curious) and then David and I will head back up to the hospital.  Hopefully they let me stay.  I hate the fact that it is 30 minutes away and I'd much rather be on the safe side.

So, please keep us in your thoughts and prayers and we will keep you all posted!

Happy Wednesday from the Central Coast!

Nothing Here to Look at, Folks!

Well, this baby's due date came and went yesterday with nothing to report.  And, today has been pretty much the same.  I did "lose" something, so maybe she'll make her appearance sooner than later.  My only guess is that she didn't want to be born under the Leo sign.  So, this family is going to have two Tauruses (or would that be Tauri?), an Aries, a Virgo and a Magnum.  Not that I have any clue what all that will mean.  I'm just ready for it to have two precious baby girls.  Bring on the labor pains!

Happy Tuesday from the Central Coast!

Nanas are Magical

...or at least, Olivia's Nana is magical!  Whoo, things have gotten a whole lot easier around here since she arrived on Wednesday evening.

She made us pancakes for breakfast and is currently scrubbing down the kitchen while I play with Olivia and her Strawberry Shortcake, Blueberry Muffin and Raspberry Torte dolls.  (Umm, let's just say these dolls are a lot different from the ones I had growing up, but they smell EXACTLY the same.)  I do sort of love that I get to do their hair in the Ooh La La Beauty Spa (from Fancy Nancy).  Mom's cleaning even inspired David to clean out the shower.  {Well, to be honest, I asked him to do it, but at least he said yes.}

We were able to go to Target on Thursday and then she watched Olivia in the afternoon while David and I ran errands {and I got my hair chopped}.

Yeah, I'm about ready to POP.

And, yesterday we made a trip to the library that was by far the easiest trip to the library we've ever made...I was able to actually browse for some books for me to read!  {Like I'm going to have a lot of time to read them in the next couple of weeks, but still...}

Yesterday, I was experiencing some serious cramping {which I was hoping was going to lead to contractions, but has currently subsided and we are showing NO signs of this baby making her way out anytime soon} and Mom took care of Olivia while I laid down and napped.  And, if that wasn't enough, she treated me to a pedicure while David took Olivia on their date night to Avila.

See, aren't Nanas the best?!

In other news, we have the Pack & Play all set up for Baby Sister to sleep in.  Olivia tested it out with some of her babies {two Cabbage Patch kids that used to be mine...just wishing I had kept my Strawberry Shortcake figurines too} and then decided to crawl in the bassinet portion of it herself.

No, the baby won't be sleeping in the bathroom, but that's where David chose to put it all together.

Hope your weekend is full of sunshine and hope ours is full of contractions!

Happy Saturday from the Central Coast!

Two and A Third

Well, Olivia, this will probably be the last birthday post you get as an "only child."  {You know, unless Baby Sister decides to camp out in Mommy's belly for another month...in which case, you will forever and always be my favorite child.}

There are a few things I would LOVE to include here on the blog, but I know that you would hate me for it one day, so I'm not going to put it up here.  But let me tell you that I am learning my lesson to DEMAND privacy from you at certain points in the day because you are entirely too observant.

Your communication skills improve on a daily basis - it is crazy for me to think about how much you know and understand and RELAY back to us.  You are a little sponge, for sure.  One thing we do need to work on with you is your communicating nicely.  You can be a little demanding sometimes.  We are hearing a lot of, I WANT IT or I CAN DO IT.  Totally typical stuff, Little Miss Independent, but something we are working on so you sound a little bit nicer when you say it.

You are still obsessed with books and the other day you sat on my lap while I read you at least 30 books.  I love being able to snuggle with you, even if it is a bit uncomfortable on my bulging belly sometimes.

You LOVE stickers and coloring books, but you usually ask me to color for you - which, I have to admit, I am really enjoying.  {I am actually thinking of taking a coloring book into the hospital with me to take my mind off of labor.}  But, your most favorite thing in the world right now would have to be your date nights with your Daddy.  You talk about going to Avila Beach ALL the time.  And you remember all the things you see -- the boy catching crabs with his net, the seagull who grabbed at your quesadilla, and Viv the fire dancer.

Your Nana came out here today and you are all about her right now!  {She showered you with all of these gifts about 3 minutes after we got home from the airport.} It is 8:20pm and I bet you are so wound up that you don't fall asleep until at least 10.  We are both relieved that she is here though.  I'm glad you get to have some special time with her before you become a big sister.

Happy 28 months, my sweet, precious baby girl.  I love you more than you will ever know.

Sibling Class

So, hopefully in no more than one week and no less than 48 hours, Olivia's baby sister will be here!  To better prepare Olivia, we took her to a sibling class at French Hospital on Saturday.  She absolutely LOVED the class and jumped right in as soon as we got there!

David sat down on the floor with Olivia and the other kids.  Most of the kids were older - between 7 and 10 - but there was one other that was 2.  All the kids got a baby doll with a diaper and a blanket and they learned how to swaddle a baby and learned how to help Mom out when changing a diaper or entertaining a baby.

Olivia had more fun grabbing as many babies as she could and asking David to change their diapers over and over.  The kids also had a chance to color some pictures and then watched a little video about life when a new baby comes along.

By far the best part of the class was the visit to the birthing area where we were able to meet a baby who was born only 24 hours before.  Olivia jumped right to the front of the line for that and snuggled up right by the teacher so she could get a good look at the precious baby girl.  Then all the kids serenaded the baby with Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star.  So sweet!

I think it was great that Olivia was able to visit the hospital and see what a hospital room would be like. She has been talking non-stop about the class and that sweet little baby.

Today I am 39 weeks pregnant.  If I had more energy after taking a shower to put some makeup on and do my hair, then maybe there'd be a picture or two of me up right now, but alas, that's not the case!  I'm worn out and uncomfortable and overly ready for my mom to be out here to help out with Olivia.  I feel so bad for her because I have very little patience left, especially on a day like today when she refused to nap and was Cranky Crankopotomus.   I think it will be a relief for all of us once Nana gets here!

So, if you are a praying person, pray that this baby stays put until at least Wednesday evening and then after that, she can make her debut.  And pray for a little bit of relief for me {and the loved ones who have to put up with me}!

Happy Monday from the Central Coast!

A Play Date, Play-Doh, and Papa's Day

Here are a few pictures from the past week.

A play date...

Some play-doh...

And a date with her papa...

Happy Friday from the Central Coast!

UH - OH, A Post With No Pictures

So, I've had a little string of bad luck with electronics lately...the most recent victim being the hard drive on my laptop.  {Thankful we had backed up all my info not too terribly long ago and also very thankful a replacement hard drive did not cost a fortune.}  The new hard drive came in yesterday and just needs to be installed.  In the meantime, I've been using David's netbook and I've just not been inspired to blog or load pictures on this one.  I should be back to normal blogging soon -- just in time to have a baby and be too exhausted to blog!

Last night, David and I had our first date night since our anniversary.  With our awesome neighbors coming over to watch Olivia, we headed up to French Hospital for a Prepared Childbirth Refresher course.  Do we know romance or what?  One thing we do know...procrastination.  Nothing like scheduling a refresher course 12 days before my due date. 

It was nice to have the reminders on some of the breathing/calming techniques and how to time the contractions.  We were there with two other couples and all shared our birth stories and it was nice to hear about how we could do things differently this time.  We wrapped up the evening watching a childbirth video and that was when it really hit me that I was going to have to go through this whole labor thing again.  Watching the women's facial expressions on the video was like a hot slap-in-the-face reminder of just how unpleasant it is until the moment your baby is placed on your chest.  There was not one smile in the whole video and I could distinctly remember each of their expressions being on my own face less than 28 months ago. 

I know it is all worth it in the end - I have a daily reminder of that with Olivia - and it is nice to think that labor doesn't last forever.  But, truly, all those philosophical mantras sort of go out the window when you are hours into labor pains.  I am all the more motivated to try the relaxation techniques from the HypnoBirthing book in the hopes that some of the pain can be relieved.

We have a family date planned for Saturday with a Sibling Class at the hospital.  We are super excited about this and think it will be a great preparation for Olivia.  Earlier this week, we packaged up Olivia's special gift for her baby sister - a pink zebra lovey and rattle - and it is sitting on my desk.  When we talked about going to this class at the hospital, Olivia immediately said, "And I get to take Baby Sister's present to her!"  Not quite yet...although I am starting to worry that all these hospital visits and newborn babies being born (our friend Sarah went into labor early and had Kendall's sister, Katelyn Elise, less than 10 hours after our playdate with her on Monday afternoon and I was lucky enough to be able to visit her in the hospital yesterday) may send my uterus into overdrive.  I'm just wanting her to hang on until at least next Wednesday when my mom flies in, otherwise I'll be leaving David in charge of Olivia and giving birth to our second daughter by myself.*

Happy Thursday from the Central Coast!



*Bill and Leslie, our neighbors, are on call for Olivia in case I go into labor early...which is SO NOT HAPPENING.  And, they are wonderful with Olivia.  She has so much fun with them last night - they had an entire set up of play-doh people, had played with Kinleigh, read several stories, played with stickers and did magnetic doll dress-ups.  She gets 100% of their attention, 100% of the time.  What kid wouldn't love that?!?!

Little Smarty Pants

Readers, meet Velma.  She's Olivia's new favorite character.  And, this is her new favorite book.  (A random grab from the library last Friday...one I've already read at least 10 times.)

Now, picture this conversation:

Me:  Olivia, what's it called when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly?

Olivia:  Metamorphosis.  {Pronounced PERFECTLY}

Me:  Well, what's it called when the butterflies fly south to Mexico to stay warm?

Olivia:  Migration.  {Again, perfect enunciation}

Me:  Well, what's that special place where butterflies sometimes live?

Olivia:  The conservatory.

Thank you, Velma Gratch for teaching my little sponge all about butterflies.

Happy Tuesday from the Central Coast!

The Kindness of Friends

You know how yesterday's blog started off with the words I'm beat!?  I'm pretty sure that the rest of my blog posts for the next three {plus, plus, plus} weeks could start off that way.  After a morning of running errands in SLO {Target, Katie's shop, the post office, Michael's and Von's} with Olivia and then spending the afternoon making a batch of breakfast burritos, I literally hit a brick wall this evening around 6:00 and had to lay down and leave the clean-up and dinner preparation to David.

But, I got my second wind when it came time to open a fabulous package that came in the mail today from one of my high school friends {and blog reader}, Natalie!  She is the sweetest thing in the world and has two of the most adorable kids EVER, Hazel and Harrison.  It was so thoughtful of her to send Baby Girl something along with something for Olivia!

Shout out to Aunt Marissa for this AMAZING dress!

Opening the card that Smarty Pants Hazel wrote letters all over.

Umm, yeah, I've already read this to her 3 times!

Can you tell she is IN LOVE with what's inside?

A new Fancy Nancy sticker book!!

So, Natalie MADE a towel, washcloth and burp cloth for the new baby!  I kid you not, Friday night I emailed my mom letting her know that if she wanted to get us something that we "needed" for the baby, she could get a couple new towels because most of the ones we used with Olivia were starting to look shabby.  And then, VOILA, this shows up!  So, Hey Natalie, tonight's email request to my mom was  one million dollars if you want to do anything about that!  ;)  

The gifts are awesome and, again, it was so SO sweet of her to think of us!  

And, speaking of the new baby, I have narrowed down her names to two choices!  {Umm, presented both to David and got no real response, but since I'm the one carrying this baby, I'm pretty sure I'll have my way!}  And, for prosperity's sake, so she knows that not everything she is getting is a hand-me-down from Olivia, here are a couple of newborn outfits I picked up for her not too long ago.  I'm not sure which one she'll be wearing home from the hospital.  {Speaking of...she is due THREE weeks from today!}

In addition to being a little more tired these days, I'm also getting more bouts of heartburn.  Thus, meet my new best friend:

I wish they tasted a little more like candy and a little less like fruity chalk.

Happy Monday from the Central Coast!