A Hot Day for the Zoo

Every year it seems like we wait too long to go to the zoo and then we're stuck going in hot weather.  This year my class and the rest of second grade was going on a field trip to the zoo so I decided it would be a fun time to go.  Luke has also been missing Callie so it was a perfect time for them to get together.  You would think that rain would be an issue when planning an outing in April...instead we contended with high 80's.  Your motherly instincts with a newborn are to keep them bundled up tight with only their little faces showing.  It was weird for me to not have a blanket on Brody and know that he was going to be happy.  

I just love these pictures of Luke and Callie.  They are so goofy in all of them.  Those two were so excited and they had a hard time even looking at the camera.  Luke's highlights were the rhino's poop and the giraffes.  He kept asking to go back and see the big rhino's poops...only a boy!  By the time we got to the tigers and the water misters Luke and Callie were super hot.  They jumped around in those misters for about ten minutes until they were drenched with water.  

It's always beneficial to have the train ride as an incentive for good behavior.  Luke always looks forward to that two minute train ride at the end of our visit.  He is a good listener and stays right by me while we're at the zoo so he can get on that train!  By the time we make it to the train the poor kid is so exhausted and hot.  I love his tired little face in the picture of him waiting for the train to go.

Brody was a perfect passenger the entire day.  He ate right when we got there and then slept the rest of the time in his stroller.  We never heard a peep from him, although he may have been too hot to cry.  

Happy Birthday Love

Mark had to work late on his birthday so we celebrated over the weekend.  Saturday night my sweet parents came and watched the boys for us so we could have a night out.  We went to Mark's favorite restaurant, Sawadee, and then walked around City Creek.  It was weird to be out and not worrying about the boys...even though I missed them terribly.  Going out with just the two of us was great and something we haven't done in a while.

Sunday night Luke and I made Mark his favorite dinner...spaghetti with homemade noodles.  Luke is always a big help with homemade noodles.  He loves to turn the handle on the machine and sprinkle flour on the dough.  Since Mark doesn't like cake I made individual cherry pies.  Luke couldn't understand why his daddy didn't like frosting and cake.  Those are two of Luke's favs and he can't picture a birthday without them.  It was a fun weekend with just our little family.  Mark is an amazing father and husband and we are so lucky to have him.  I love you Mark!  Happy Birthday Love!

Can I just say how in love I am with this picture!?!?  I just love how sweet Brody looks being kissed by his daddy and how enamored Luke is over a simple birthday candle.  I am so lucky to have these three! 

Tubby Time

As a mother I love having bath time before bed.  It feels so good to wash off the day and have my children smelling yummy and all clean for bed.  Luke has always loved tubby time before bed too, but now that he gets to bathe with Brody he can't wait for the tubby.  He asks all day if he can get in the tub with Brother.  I am glad that they have something they like to do together already.  It's so fun to see Luke playing and bonding with Brody!  We always have to keep Brody covered in warm wash cloths...or "wash clubs" if you ask Luke...and he loves it when Luke pours warm water on him!  I just love these two and can't wait to see what great friends they become!  

Lukers is 3!

It was a little crazy having Luke's birthday so close to Brody's birth.  April is now going to be an extra busy birthday month for our family.  Mark and I wanted to be sure that Luke had a great birthday and didn't feel neglected because of Brody.  

On his actual birthday Mark hurried home from work and picked up pizza...combination...Luke's favorite because he can just eat all the different toppings.  After we ate Mark and Luke headed to Boondocks.  Luke had a great time bowling, climbing in the jungle gym, playing the arcades, and spending his tickets.  When they got home we sung to Luke and had cake.  He still isn't great at blowing out candles and needed a little help from me.  

We got Luke a bike for his birthday and it was a huge hit!  It is one of those no peddle bikes so he can learn how to balance.  He rode it all over the house and even had to sleep with it by his bed.  I can already guess what he'll want to be doing all summer!

The next day we had Luke's family and friends party.  I planned to have it at the Rec Center so we could keep germs away from our house.  Luke had a hard time making up his mind between a pirate and a fish birthday.  He finally decided on fish!!! It was fun creating everything in Photoshop because Luke would sit with me and pick out colors and which sea creature he liked best!  He wanted to have donuts at his party because that's his new favorite treat!!!

I hope Lukers realizes how loved he is.  He had so many family and friends that came to help him celebrate and they all gave him such wonderful gifts.  He was in heaven and loved every minute of his party.  I had a hard time getting a good pic of him in the pool because he was constantly on the move and playing with his friends.  Now we just need to help him remember that he is 3...if you ask him he says 2, 5, or 12!  

I just love this little guy.  Words cannot express how much I love him and how much I love being his mother.  It has been hard the past couple of weeks having two kids and trying to give each the time and attention they need.  Luke is so full of life and I am constantly laughing at the funny things he does and says.  We have so much fun playing at  home together.  Our favorite things to do together are puzzles, cuddle up and watch a movie, play outside with bubbles, go to the park, read stories, and play board games.  Probably my favorite thing is to play make-believe.  It amazes me how creative his little mind is and what he comes up with.  Luke is perpetual motion, but he always manages to remind me each day how much he loves me.  My favorite thing to do is kiss his chubby little cheeks while he is sleeping and whisper, "I love you."  It is rare when Luke is not moving so I love to see how peaceful he looks when he sleeps!  I love Lukers and hope he had a wonderful birthday!    

Easter

Easter was a bit more challenging this year since we had a six day old in our family! On Saturday I took Luke over to our neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt. Luke was so excited and could hardly wait...I had been up all night with Brody and just wanted to sleep. Still, I dragged myself out of bed and made two pans of cinnamon rolls for the breakfast at the hunt. As we were walking out the door Luke threw his fist in the air and yelled, "Let's go to the Easter Egg Hunt." His little fist hit one of the pans and it went flying. I think I was too tired to freak out because I just stepped over the mess and started to walk across the street. Poor Luke kept apologizing and I told him to not worry and have fun at the hunt.

Each child could find twelve candy filled eggs and as much candy as they wanted. Luke just went for the candy because he didn't understand that the eggs were filled with candy. Once he figured that out he didn't like the rule of only collecting twelve. It was fun to get out of the house and do something with Luke. He had a fun time playing with all of his friends!

That night we dyed our eggs. Luke loves to be hands-on in the kitchen and he wanted to do all the dying himself. We had quite a few broken eggs and splashed dye when we were done. However, Luke had a great time and that's all that matters.

The next morning Mark woke Luke up when he got home from his church meetings. I was just getting up with Brody so I didn't get pictures of Luke finding his eggs. I guess it doesn't matter since the big hit for Luke was his Bubble Mower that the Easter Bunny left. It was a bit chilly outside but that didn't stop Luke from heading out to the mow the backyard in his underwear and no shoes.

I had made these Easter shirts for the boys a few weeks ago. I tried extra hard to get a good picture of my two little guys in their chocolate bunny shirts, but you can't even see the shirts and poor Brody was wanting nothing to do with it. We had a nice and relaxing Easter. It was nice to be at home with our little family! Happy Easter!

Brody's Birth Story

Our little Brody was born on April 1, 2012. It was a scheduled induction so we arrived at the hospital at 8:30 in the morning. Labor and Delivery was a little crazy at the moment so we just waited in the waiting room for our nurse to finish the delivery she was working on. Our nurse Carrie was able to get me checked in and hooked up to the monitors. Dr. Spencer came in around 9:00 and broke my water. He asked if we had any predictions on how long the delivery would be and I said 8-10 hours since Luke was 18 hours long. He said his guess was I'd have a baby by 2:00...this seemed super optimistic to me!

I have been feeling like I was in labor for the past three weeks. When Carrie first looked at the monitors she said she wouldn't doubt it and said I should probably get my epidural. I was a three and 100% effaced so I decided why not get the meds going and take some of that pain away!

My anesthesiologist was Dr. Silver. He was a sharp guy and really fun to talk to. By the time he left my room he had cost us quite a bit of money. He suggested a few books and an iPad cover that Mark quickly bought on Amazon.

After I received my epidural I was able to relax and read for a bit. Carrie came in to check on me about an hour later and I was dilated to a six. Mark thought he better grab some lunch so he headed downstairs to eat. In the meantime Carrie and I talked for about thirty minutes. Before she left my room she said she'd just check me one more time. In that short time I had progressed to a nine and I could feel him coming. She quickly called Dr. Spencer and got everything prepped for the delivery.

Dr. Spencer arrived at 1:55 and I was relieved because I didn't think I could keep him in much longer. Right when he arrived they got me ready to push. Mark took his position in the chair up by my head...he doesn't handle the delivery very well. I only had to push three times and he was out. Brody arrived at 2:04pm. Mark likes our babies to be washed right away when they come out, but I wanted to try skin to skin this time. I am so glad I did. It was so nice to sit and hold my little guy and comfort him instead of having him scrubbed down.

He weighed 7 pounds 1 ounce and was 20 inches long. It was so nice to finally have him here and get to see what he looked like. The first day we thought he looked a little different than Luke, but by day two we decided they were twins! Our hospital stay was very relaxing being able to just spend time with Brody. Grandma and Grandpa Talbot came to visit Brody in the hospital. Since Brody's middle name is Grant I just love this picture of Grandpa holding Brody and Brody looking up at him wide eyed.

It was hard not being able to see Luke while we were in the hospital. No one under 14 was allowed in. Each night my parents would bring Luke to the hospital so Mark could take him home. It was hard knowing that he was out in the lobby crying and wanting to see me and Brody. I was able to go out one night and see him. We decided to hold Brody up to the window so Luke could see him. He kept saying how sweet he was and wanted to give him a kiss. I was so excited when we were able to bring Brody home and be together as a family! We are so blessed to have this little guy in our family! I am so grateful for how smooth everything went and to have such a perfect and healthy little guy!

Easter Countdown

I haven't felt like that great of a mom lately because I am nine months pregnant and not a lot of energy or patience. I decided we needed to do something fun. I made this little Easter Countdown for Luke. Each egg has a number and then is filled with either an Easter treat or activity.

Today was our first day and it was an activity. We planted wheat grass for our Easter baskets. Luke thought it was pretty fun planting all the seeds and watering the dirt. However, he couldn't understand why we weren't outside using the tools. I thought wheat grass would be perfect because it sprouts in just a few days and will be long and ready by Easter. The boys' Easter baskets will be super cute with living grass growing out of them! Can't wait!