A Texan Misplaced

Clark week 1

2010-07-29T02:00:00.000-07:00

How are we doing? That's the question I get asked most often lately. And the answer is, we are doing great!

I've had two newborns before little Clark and each time it gets easier than the last. Clark so far is the easiest baby yet. He's eating every three hours and so far, nursing him is going really well. Nursing with the girls only lasted about 8 weeks (longest 8 weeks of my life) but I'm optimistic that Clark and I will be able to surpass that.

He falls asleep easily and loves to be cuddled. I really can't get enough of him and am trying to hold onto each moment because this newborn phase goes by so quickly.

Even though I haven't slept for more than 3 consecutive hours since last week, I don't feel exhausted. I actually feel pretty good.

I really have my mom to thank for such a smooth transition. She's wonderful and helps me tremendously. She's the reason I can sit on the couch and feed Clark for hours and just cuddle him as much as I want. The girls adore her and they are getting all of the love and attention they need.

So far, week 1 has surpassed my expectations. We'll see what week 2 holds.

Big sister

2010-07-27T20:03:00.000-07:00

Hard to believe that my Olivia is a big sister. She's adjusting to her big sister role quite easily. She really adores little Clark. Jason and I and Isabella took Clark for a follow up bilirubin level on Saturday and Olivia went from room to room calling out for "baby." Apparently she didn't care that mom and dad were gone, her only concern was her brother. So cute.

Sleeping baby

2010-07-25T17:03:00.000-07:00

There were only a few things that I purchased for Clark because I already have all of the baby gear. One of the best things I bought were these blankets. The fabric stretches slightly and is light. Highly recommend.

Here is a clip of Clark enjoying his blanket. All swaddled and cozy.

Mr Blue Eyes

2010-07-25T16:45:00.000-07:00

Clark has the deepest blue eyes I've seen. I hope they don't change color, but they might.

Sisterly love

2010-07-25T16:42:00.000-07:00

Isabella is completely smitten by baby Clark. She kisses him all of the time and helps me change his diaper. Today she enjoyed singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star to him while he slept.
Olivia seems to be adjusting well to her new brother. She just doesn't sit still long enough for me to get a picture of them together.

Leaving the hospital

2010-07-24T15:54:00.000-07:00

The idea of semi private rooms in the postpartum unit was definitely something a man came up with. I would have gone home the first day if given the choice, but that was not an option. At 7am on day 2 Clark and I were really ready to get home. It wasn't until 6pm that we were actually discharged. When I put Clark in his car seat I had flashbacks of putting Olivia in her oversized car seat and could not believe that we were doing this again so soon. Clark looked like such a peanut.

meeting baby brother

2010-07-24T15:26:00.000-07:00

The girls were so excited to come and see their new baby brother. Jason brought them to the hospital around noon. As soon as they saw him, they immediately ran to him and gave him kisses. Isabella held him for 20 minutes, talking to him and kissing him. Olivia just said "baby, baby" over and over and loved touching his face.

Pics day 1

2010-07-24T14:46:00.000-07:00

These are a few pics of the brand new babe at just an hour old.

Birth Day: Clark James Mulliner

2010-07-23T12:51:00.000-07:00

We got to the hospital Wednesday night July 21st around 8:30pm. The unit was swamped so I wasn't seen until almost midnight. When the resident checked me, I was 4cm dilated. She checked with my OB who was on call that night and the plan was to go ahead and start the low dose Pitocin.

At around 1:00 am they moved me into the labor and delivery unit and started the Pitocin at 1:15am. I was feeling pretty good, although started feeling the contractions almost immediately. The contractions started out mild, but of course that all changed. Around 3:15am the contractions were 1-2 minutes apart and pretty intense. I called for my favorite person, the anesthesiologist and was in epidural heaven by 4am. Myself and Jason were able to get a much needed nap from 4-6am.

The resident came in around 6:15am and checked me, I was 6-7cm dilated. At 7:15am I felt extreme pressure and knew it was time to meet this little man. It took about 20 minutes to round everyone up which seemed like an eternity. Just two pushes later and Clark James Mulliner came crying into the world at 7:46am. He weighed 7lbs 2 oz and was 19 inches long. Absolute perfection.

overdue

2010-07-20T18:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my due date and apparently this little guy is happy where he is. I'm scheduled for an induction on Thursday. I'll go into the hospital tomorrow evening and then they'll start the Pitocin Thursday morning.
I still can't believe that after 9 months we'll finally meet this baby. I hope the adjustment is smooth. Isabella is super excited and talks about baby brother all of the time. I know she'll be a big help to me. I'm not sure if Olivia knows what's going on or not, I'm assuming she has no idea and just hope that she'll adjust quickly.

Really looking forward to Thursday!

Prima ballerina

2010-07-20T12:53:00.000-07:00

Even though Isabella is the sister taking ballet and tap lessons, I know Olivia would love to be right there beside her. This morning the girls wanted to dress up like princesses and were giddy with excitement to spend the next 30 minutes dancing in their room and showing off their best moves. Olivia was so fun to watch, she is such an entertainer and looked so adorable in her tutu.

a new lens

2010-07-16T21:58:00.000-07:00

I'm still trying to figure out how to use the new lens I got for my birthday.

Olivia 18 months

2010-07-16T19:03:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe that in only a few days (fingers crossed) Olivia will no longer be the baby in the family. It does sadden me a bit. Of course I'm excited to add a new little guy to our family but no longer will it be just us and the girls.

Olivia is such a character. She's always out to have a good time and a super happy little girl. Although, she does do her fair share of whining at times but more and more she's using her words to communicate and her vocabulary is growing quickly.
She's super attached to her binkie and carries her bottle around with her as if were her blanket or a stuffed animal. I'm going to have to surgically remove both items after we've all adjusted to baby brother, it's not going to be pretty.

She's really into reading books with animals and loves making animal sounds. Her best animal sound yet is the monkey (she mastered that one when she was 13 mos).

She loves to play in the water and to jump on the trampoline. She loves to touch any animal but isn't too excited about bugs.

It takes her a moment to warm up to a new environment, but within a few minutes she seems to feel right at home. She's over the hitting strangers stage and plays well with other kids.

Olivia is still fearless, brave, has a lot of spunk and energy and a pretty strong personality which I think will serve her well.

She is definitely the performer and entertainer of the family. She makes me laugh all of the time.

Olivia is still very attached to me but does more and more to exert her independence.

I adore her and for the foreseeable future I think she's still going to be my "baby".

A few stats at her 18mos well check:

Height: 84%
Weight: 61%
Head Circumference: 90%

soccer mom

2010-07-15T18:44:00.000-07:00

Today I'm vowing not to become a "soccer mom." I refuse to live in the car driving each kid from activity to activity. My schedule today looked like this:

9:45-11:30: Dr appt for Isabella (her VSD has closed so that's great news)

11:30-12:30: Swim lesson for Isabella (we were late thanks to the delay at the MD office)

1:00-2:00: Eat lunch and recoup

2:00-2:20: Drop off deposit and pick up registration paperwork for Isabella's preschool

2:30-3:45: OB appt, the NP confirmed that a whole lot of nothing is going on in the "when am I going to have this baby" department (thought I'd be able to schedule the induction, but the hospital won't allow it until the patient is 40 weeks, which is on Monday)

4:30-5:30: Take Isabella to dance class (which she loves, today was her 2nd day)

6:00 - 9:00: finally home for the day.... Dinner, baths, books, and then watching the girls play and run around like hyper maniacs as they often do before bedtime

I'm exhausted and just because we'll be replacing our Subaru Outback with a minivan within the next few months does not mean I'm going to live in it.

a baby shower

2010-07-13T01:17:00.001-07:00

Lytle worked incredibly hard at putting together a fabulous baby shower. The menu was delicious and the decor beautiful.
I loved the advice people gave for having 3 under 3. It was a fun night. Thanks Lytle.

Isabella turns 3

2010-07-12T05:27:00.000-07:00

Isabella's Birthday Party was a lot of work but also a lot of fun. She loved being the birthday girl. When I asked her what she loved most about her birthday party she replied, "the cupcakes."
The kids had a great time playing in the water. The weather was pretty warm and humid but no one complained. Because I was running around making sure everyone had what they needed and that no one was drowning in the pool, I wasn't able to snap as many pics as I would have liked, but at least I got a few.

Before the party, Isabella would say she was 6 yrs old or sometimes 1, but now she knows she is 3 and says that she is a big girl.

About Isabella:
She is a super sweet little girl. She's very caring and compassionate towards other people and especially her little sister, even though they may not always share, etc.

People comment that she is very mature for her age and because of her height, everyone thinks she is 4. (She's in the 99th percentile for height at her 3 yr well check)

She has the memory of an elephant. She forgets nothing.

She loves Church and going to nursery. She's super social and remembers to bless her friends in her nightly prayer.

She's very courteous, saying please, thank you and excuse me without being reminded (for the most part).

She's a great shopping companion and loves to be out and about.

She's super excited for baby brother to join our family and asks each day when he'll come out and if he has finished "sleeping" inside my belly.

She has a good mix of princess and tomboy. She loves to play dress up but also loves to catch bugs and go "exploring" with mom.

She knows the ABC's in uppercase and for the most part, knows the lowercase letters as well. She also loves being read to, one book after another and another and another....

She understands everything we say in Spanish but replies only in English unless asked to repeat in Spanish. Although, there are still some words she knows only in Spanish.

Of course I think she is totally wonderful and the best thing that ever happened to me. I love that girl!

taking a break

2010-07-08T12:31:00.001-07:00

I'm taking a quick break from party planning Isabella's birthday party tomorrow. We're going to have a backyard water party equipped with a large inflatable pool, water balloons, water guns, a sprinkler, the trampoline and perhaps a pinata if I have time to run to the store today.
I'll post more later about my sweet Isabella and what is means to be 3 yrs old.

a few things....

2010-07-06T18:52:00.001-07:00

first of all, whose ideas was it to have three kids under three? what in the world were we thinking? i think we have totally lost our minds and number three hasn't even made his debut.

also, how can I get my girls to go to sleep before 9:30?? ridiculous.

i really need to do what this lady does. no, seriously.

christmas came early this year and this lovely arrived on my doorstep today, which is why i need to start doing what that lady in the video does asap.

4th of July weeekend

2010-07-04T05:16:00.000-07:00

We kicked off the weekend with a dinner and fireworks show aboard the Battleship New Jersey. It was cool to be on such a huge ship and the views of the city and fireworks were pretty awesome.
I wish I videotaped the girls while they watched the fireworks show because they were in total awe and loving it. Isabella kept commenting how awesome and cool the fireworks were.

Summer preschool

2010-06-29T19:44:00.000-07:00

I decided it would be fun for Isabella if a few friends got together and started a summer preschool one day/week. Today was our first day and the theme was rainbows. I stole all of the ideas from this super homeschool mom. Thank you, thank you.
We started off with a "hello" song and then read a book about rainbows. The kids then did their rainbow craft and decided they'd had enough crafting and went outside to jump on the trampoline. Once they were sufficiently sweaty, they came back in for the alphabet game which lasted all of 2 minutes. We moved on to the water and food coloring activity which they loved, followed by snack time and more jumping on the trampoline.
I learned a few things today.....kids just want to play. I planned several other activities but it was obvious they weren't interested so Isabella and I did a few of them this afternoon.
Preschool should be fun while also being educational, but having fun is really all that matters when you are 3.

37 weeks

2010-06-28T19:01:00.000-07:00

As much as I want this little guy to come early because the round ligament pain is just about to do me in, I am enjoying getting more than 3 hours of consecutive sleep a night. Also, I could do without the enormous weight gain and the swollen feet. Yeah, early is good, but I doubt it will happen. (sigh)

anything for a laugh

2010-06-25T18:39:00.000-07:00

Olivia spent at least 15 minutes today pouring water on her head and face with a cup because she was getting a great laugh from Isabella. I think this girl is going to be the entertainer in the family.

3 decades

2010-06-23T19:00:00.001-07:00

Today I turned 30. Yes, hard to believe. Farewell twenties.
As I reflected for about 5 minutes while singing the girls to sleep tonight I came to a few realizations.
I never imagined myself in this place at age 30. And by "this place" I mean with two beautiful girls and one little guy due to arrive in a few weeks. I also never thought I'd be the happiest I've ever been in my life. I never planned on those things. What I did plan on was completing a master's degree by age 30, perhaps running a few more marathons, and working in a few trips abroad for fun along the way.
All of those things don't matter anymore. What does matter is my family and that is really the only thing that means anything to me. My twenties were good to me, but I'm really looking forward to my thirties.

trying to keep up

2010-06-23T11:43:00.000-07:00

Olivia likes doing everything that Isabella does and yesterday she decided she needed to wash the dishes because of course she just can't let Isabella have all of the fun. So, she climbed onto the stool all by herself and started saying, "aqua, aqua.." Dish washing kept her entertained for about 20 minutes and it's a good thing I could care less about these kitchen floors as there was probably more water on the floor than in the sink when she was done.

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-20T18:54:00.001-07:00

Alright, let's stop pretending that we always have family home evening and that the girls quietly sit totally consumed by the lesson. For three minutes today this was the case so I had to grab my camera because I don't know when I'll see that again.

Father's Day was spent enjoying time with dad. The girls crave attention from him and for a day he was theirs. I know the girls had the greatest time and I think Jason liked it too.