Christiana

Christiana is way too much fun!! She makes us laugh everyday. I LOVE her potty shot!!

Update

Christiana's Anderson and my Anderson!!

Anderson smiled SO BIG when he met his cousin Lizzy for the first time. This was part of the "moment"

Well, well, it's been such a long time!! Between having a baby, recovering from the c-section, going to Utah three weeks postpartum and moving everything out of our house there, to coming home and turning around to Utah a few weeks later for Christmas for 1o days we have been busy, busy around here. Things are settling down, at least for this week, it will pick back up here as we are adding an addition to our home.

I didn't write much about Anderson's birth. So, here goes! My water broke at 2:30 in the morning, just as it did with Christiana, the exact same time of night even! I didn't start contracting, same as with Christiana, so we rested in bed for an hour before getting up to get ready to go to the hospital. I still wasn't contracting after a few hours of being in the hospital so they gave me some pitocin to get me started. I contracted for an hour or two before getting the epidural and then went quickly to a ten and the doctor was called. We did some pushes and he noticed that Anderson was up-side down, or "sunny-side up" as they like to call it. The doctor tried to turn him around a few times with no luck. He said I could still deliver him normally, but it would just be more work on my part. After a half an hour of pushing without any progress the doctor suggested a c-section. I said no way and told him I wanted to push for as long as I could. I did NOT want a c-section. After two hours of pushing and Anderson and I were both swelling, I decided to succomb and go with the c-section. Everything went well and we feel so blessed to have our healthy little boy here with us.

I did miss having a normal birth, I was so drugged up and groggy from the long labor and c-section that I didn't get to see Anderson for an hour or so after he was born and I could barely open my eyes to see him. His nose was pushed up, swollen and he had huge dents and bruises on his forehead. He wasn't coming any other way!! I think Anderson spent four weeks recovering as well, he was a lot more out of it then I was expecting. So, after having major surgery, the doctor told me I couldn't lift Christiana for six weeks, WHAT!! I could barely hold her on my lap for the first two weeks, if she touch me it hurt. After a couple weeks my incision was feeling better and I could bend down to pick something off the floor, but the worse part of the recovery was some intense shoulder pain that I somehow got during the whole ordeal. I wonder if it was from trying to get out of the hospital bed. It was some of the worse pain I have ever had. The few hours Anderson would let me sleep in the night I couldn't because the pain was so intense. If I tried to lay on either side the pain would intensify and I couldn't sleep on my stomach or back. So, I slept sitting up on the couch for three weeks. Luckily the pain wasn't horrible throughout the day, but at night it would flare up. So, after four weeks the pain finally subsided, I still can't lift my arm in some directions, but I am so grateful to have it on the mend.

On top of the hard recovery, Anderson was fussy and couldn't sleep for more then fourty-five minutes at a time and would have a hard time eating at times. After reading a lot I decided that he had a little acid reflux and I had him sleep reclined in his swing and I stopped eating citrus fruits. He was able to sleep for three to four hours at a time and he has become such a happy baby. I am glad the more natural methods have relieved some of his pain and I don't need to give him medication. He sleeps from ten to six most nights, what a guy!! He is such a sweetie and loves to smile and talk to us. Christiana LOVES Anderson. I thought she would be so happy to see me after two days of not seeing me while I was in the hospital, but all she really wanted was Anderson. So cute. She helps me take care of him every day without fail!! She loves to get his diaper stuff for me and pick out his clothes. She knows that she only gives him his binky when he is crying and loves to give him his binky.

I think watching so many diaper changes that aren't her own, has helped make her very interested in the potty. She got a potty for Christmas and has been going ever since!! She just plopped right down on it Christmas morning, went number two and has been going ever since. She wears a diaper at night and wakes up wet some mornings, but other then that is going strong. What a gal!! Even in Utah with traveling and being somewhere other then her home for ten days, she has done well. We'll see what happens long term!

I am loving being with these darling kids every day. They are so sweet and it is keeping us so busy. I love Anderson's smiles and coos and Christiana gives the BEST hugs every day. We are happy and healthy and would love to see those of you who we haven't seen for a while!!

Anderson Rolfe

Our baby boy is here!! He was born on October 29th weighing in at 8 pounds 15 ounces. After pushing for two hours I went in for an emergency c-section. He was sunny-side up and just wouldn't turn or come through. Anderson was born on my late Uncle Chris's birthday. My uncle Chris died while I lived at my grandmas. He moved in while he was on kimo and I was there every step of the way. I wanted Anderson to come on Chris's birthday and HE DID!! What a blessing. Anderson was given the same middle name as Uncle Chris.

Anderson is such a sweet boy. He HATES to get his diapepr changed and he has a really good set of lungs. The nurse who bathed him told me what a set of lungs he has and she was right!! Christiana LOVES him and helps me change all of his diapers. I am slowly recovering and trying to get the hang of two little cuties!!

A Bad Soap Opera

Our new family addition is due to come this week and we are all so excited!! I know it looks like I'm having more than one, but there is just one little guy in there!!

Chris and I were on a walk and a lady said something that I hadn't ever heard before. I can't tell you how many people have said to me in the last three months, "There is no way you will make it to your due date!" or "are you sure there is just one in there" or "you are just all baby aren't you". Well, this lady immediately said, "Wow, you look like a bad soap opera! It doesn't even look real!" Then she asked me if she could see my belly. Well, there was no way I was going to show her my belly, so she'll just have to wonder if I really am pregnant or if I have a "fake" baby strapped on my belly. She was really sweet, it was just something no one has ever said to me and I've gotten lots of laughs about it since!!

We will keep you all posted on our new arrival. Can't wait to meet him!!

Trip

We were able to go to New York and stay with Chris's family for a week. Chris's sister Suzie came and so did Chris's brother Andy, his wife Jenece and their two kids. We had so much fun and it was so nice to spend a lot of time with family. We then flew to Utah and spent a week there with my family, Chris's family and friends. We had such a LONG but great vacation. We didn't want to come home!! Now we are just waiting any day for our new addition to come!! The Sacred Grove

The Smith house

Palmayra Temple

Downtown PittsfordThe Crew!!

Glamour Shots

This was the first time Christiana didn't think getting her picture taken was so much fun!! I can't believe more of the pictures didn't look like the last one, so full of tears!! The ratty teddy bear and dolls were are only saving grace!! I hope a little healthy baby brother competition will help her want to get her picture taken next time. I can't believe I will have another little one soon to take to glamour shots! So exciting!

I cut off Christiana's mullet/curls the other day and I am missing them a bit!! Anyone with any baby girl hair advice? It's hard to know what to do when her hair grows long in the back and doesn't grow very fast on the sides!!

P.S. The face Christiana is making in the third to last picture is SO Christiana. She cracks me up!! Love that girl!!

Our Family Pets

Ever since we moved into our house here in Arizona we have had cats come and go in our backyard. I think the former owners of our house took in cats or had cats or left a cat- - something. There was a cat door in our sliding glass door that we removed. So, the first summer we were here there was a cat here all summer that would come and go. Last summer a cat had a litter of babies in our back yard, but I we didn't pay much attention to them or see them very often. This summer we had another cat (I think it was one of the babies from the first litter) have a litter of four kittens. Christiana has LOVED having these kittens. I have LOVED having them as well. I'm not much of an animal person so this has been a great way to have animals around for Christiana. It has also been a great way to survive the Arizona heat. Christiana wants to go out and see the kittens AT LEAST three times a day. We watch them from our sliding glass door and we started feeding them once they got a little older. They are all so cute. They are getting older now and are starting to leave our backyard, but we have LOVED our kittens!!