Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Easter 2010

Here are some of my favorite photos from Easter--mostly pics of Adalyn having a blast and enjoying the holiday :)

We prepared for Easter by dyeing eggs a few days before. Adalyn was more interested in the stickers to put on the eggs.


The bunny friend, she loved just as much as she did last year! But last year I think they were the same height.


We looked for eggs and opened baskets at our house on Easter morning. Then we headed to Darby to visit Jamey's family. Here are the little cousins, all wearing beautiful dresses made by Grandma Coral! Adalyn and Brenna are in the back and the babies Ella and Emery are in the front. Emery is just eleven days older than Ella so they are very close in age.


Brenna and Adalyn had a ton of fun looking for eggs!


After we ate lunch and had fun opening baskets inside, the girls put play clothes on and went out to look for more eggs and go for some rides. Adalyn rode with Grandpa Randy and visited the horses.


Taking the lil Jeep for a spin! We nabbed this on a great Black Friday sale and gave it to Addy on Easter morning. She was going to receive it on her birthday, but January doesn't really work well for outdoor toys :) It is cute to watch her figure out the steering and gas pedal at the same time, and the tongue helps with that concentration!


Looking for eggs never gets old :)






After visiting a while, we packed up and headed back to Missoula to enjoy an Easter dinner at the Beree house. We put Easter dresses back on and Addy enjoyed hunting for more eggs and baskets. Even us "big kids" (Jamey, myself, my sister and her fiance and our stepbrother) had an egg hunt. My mom hid nearly 50 eggs in the house and they were all hidden so well we had no idea until she told us after dinner that the eggs had been hidden all day. We were scrambling all over and the competition was on! I imagine five adults running around with baskets racing for hidden eggs was quite a sight. After the hunt, we all opened them to find candy and some money prizes.





Little Emmy was worn out!


Grandma Jill helping Addy find some eggs.


Again we enjoyed another busy but wonderful Easter with family this year. I can't wait for Emery to join in the fun next year :)

Monday, April 26, 2010

Easter Egg Hunt on the Oval

We attended the annual egg hunt on the oval at The University of Montana again this year. It basically went like this: Very cold wind blowing from Hellgate Canyon, Addy loving and hugging the Easter bunny, Addy loving, hugging and dancing with the Monte mascot, waiting on the edges of the 0-2 age group for the clock tower to strike 1 p.m., a complete mad dash of parents and little kids racing for plastic eggs and candy that was picked up in seconds, well, possibly a minute or two in the little kids area, looking over the loot and reflecting on the experience, returning the plastic eggs, and heading back to the car. And yes, we will probably go back again next year to do it again! Addy loved it again this year. Next year, she'll be in the group for 3-year-olds and Emery will be in the 0-2 group. But, I must say, for being 2 this year, Adalyn totally understood the concept. She raced to the middle of the lawn area and drug Jamey with her. I followed out with the stroller and Emery sound asleep inside. Adalyn filled her basket with eggs and candy she scooped up herself. Later she even picked up and handed candy to other little kids. (what a little sweetie!)

Bunny hug




Monte hug and dance time


Trying to stay warm while waiting


Where's Adalyn and her daddy?


How Emery enjoyed the egg hunt


Daddy pushing his girls in the double stroller :)

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Emery 2 months


Tummy Time

Emery had her two-month appointment yesterday. It wasn't just my imagination causing me to think she has almost outgrown her bassinet, she has grown four inches since birth! Her length is now 24 inches, which is the 95th percentile. I am amazed how long she is right now, she may be a tall girl like her big sis. She weighs 11 lbs. 13 oz. She is even wearing some 3-6 month shirts and pajamas right now as some of the 0-3 and 3 month ones are getting short.



She has really been smiling and interacting a lot. She is very interested in watching what Adalyn is doing and is really cute to see her turn her head and follow her the best she can. I have been trying to get as much cuddle time in with her when I can, especially during Addy's naps and bedtime. She is a great sleeper at night. Since she came home, she has slept 5-8 hour stretches at night. The first days I set an alarm to wake me to feed her every 3-4 hours but she was gaining weight so well her pediatrician agreed I could just let her sleep until she woke up on her own. She sleeps much lighter during the day as she feeds quite frequently to make up for the long sleep stretches at night.



I just love my girls so much! It can be challenging to care for two little ones who often both have needs at the exact same time, and that is a story for another post, but I think things are going quite well! It just seems so natural and perfect that Emery is part of our family and we are all enjoying her as she develops her own personality.

I have quite a few cute Easter pics I am working on, we sure had a busy few days and Adalyn had a blast egg-hunting so I really have to share those pics soon!

Monday, March 29, 2010

Easter Bunny!

On Sunday we took the girls to have photos taken with the Easter bunny at the mall. Adalyn just adored the bunny last year and she was very excited to see him the week before as we walked past so we prepared to come back for a cute photo. I bought the girls cute matching dresses from The Children's Place for a great price and Adalyn wore a big white hair bow and little Emery even wore a little hair bow too. We tried out our new double stroller and it worked great! Adalyn likes her "new ride." Grandma Jill met us there and Dana and Justin came to visit us and watch the girls get their photos taken. After the photos, we all ran some errands and did a little shopping in the mall and ate lunch at The Mustard Seed.

Prior to the photos, we waited for everyone just behind the photo backdrop at the fountain. Some time before, we told Adalyn that her mommy and daddy first met there, at the fountain when I was on a break from my very first job at Sears and we each had a friend meeting there and we both happened to be along. Adalyn remembers we told her about that, so she started saying "where mommy and daddy met" over and over as we waited. It was pretty cute to hear her say that while we admired our two girls and thought about all that had transpired in the past eleven-and-a-half years since our first meeting.

When we got to the bunny, Adalyn couldn't stop dancing around and waving to him, she was SO excited! When it was her turn, she ran right up to him and gave him a huge hug. She seemed a little surprised when we put Emery on his lap first and then set her up there but she was grinning like crazy for every photo. Emery did great, only six weeks old and sitting on the Easter bunny for the first time. She looked at the camera when the photographer made funny noises to get their attention.



Big feet are great for hopping!




The photographer told Adalyn to hug the bunny but she couldn't really turn to hug him so we got this cute pose and I like how Emery was looking straight at the camera


This one is so funny--Adalyn was like "what are you doing?" when bunny patted her shoulder


I can't wait to color eggs and look for eggs and baskets!

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Emery's Birth Day

Here is Emery's overdue birth story. I have rarely had the chance to get to the computer and actually use two hands to type as usually I only have one free hand :) It is very long so feel free to skip it and just look at her cute photos instead!

Emery was born on February 10th, a few days before her due date on the 15th. I was having some pre-labor signs starting around the 7th so I was hoping I wouldn't have to wait until the 15th or later for her to arrive. I had an appointment with my doctor late in the day on the 9th and I had a little progress, I was 2 cm dilated. That evening I continued to have some irregular contractions but I had no idea if they would turn into anything else, since it was so different from my labor with Adalyn. Early in the morning on the 10th, the contractions were getting uncomfortable at times and my mind was going so I could not sleep any more and got up to take a shower. I got dressed and sat on the couch to watch TV and time contractions. I didn't want to wake Jamey up until I was sure. He had been working on sealing the tile on the bathroom floor that night and we went to bed very late, around 2 a.m. So, I only got about 2 hours of sleep. When I was sure the contractions were close enough, I woke Jamey up and we got final things ready to head to the hospital. I called my mom to come over to stay at our house and watch Adalyn. I was excited and nervous that it was time to go. It was still very early in the morning and Adalyn was sound asleep and I went in to her room to check on her and admire her darling face for a second, and I thought about how everything was about to change. The next time Adalyn saw me, I was holding her baby sister!

We checked in to the hospital and it was probably around 7:15 or 7:30. It was quite busy in the labor area and I think the nurses had just changed shifts. We got settled in a room and I was hooked up to monitors tracking my contractions and the baby's heartbeat. When they checked me, I was about 3-4 cm dilated. I was actually disappointed I was only 3-4 cm since I had been feeling contractions for a few hours and Adalyn's birth was very fast so I thought I would be there all day. Again, I only felt the contractions in my back. My doctor was performing a c-section that morning so the plan was for him to come in and break my water when he was finished. Jamey and I just kind of hung out for awhile and watched TV. We hadn't packed any activities to pass the time and we were a little bored and anxious. The hospital lost all of my registration paperwork I had filled out weeks before so I had to fill everything out again so that helped pass the time I guess. I asked for some food and ate a bagel and some fruit. After awhile, I stopped feeling the contractions although they were still showing up on the monitor. We walked around the labor and recovery areas to see if things would pick up. When they picked up again, I sat on the birth ball for awhile and if I sat just right, I didn't feel any contractions although they were still regular. We decided Jamey should leave to get something to eat and to run home to see Adalyn and get a pack of cards or some activity for us to do while we waited. So, Jamey left so he could get back before the doctor came, as we weren't quite sure when he would be in. The doctor came in to check me and broke my water at about 10:45. I was 5 cm at that time. I called Jamey and told him the status and he finished eating and said goodbye to Adalyn and came back. We are only about a 5-10 minute drive to the hospital from our house so he wasn't long. The contractions were starting to get uncomfortable and really hurt after that. By the time he got back, things were starting to get pretty serious. We got the cards out but it was too late, I couldn't concentrate on them anymore. I worked on my breathing but the pain was different this time. It got really intense really fast. I tried the birthing ball again but it just wasn't working as well. I didn't have an epidural with Adalyn as it was such a fast labor so I really didn't want one with this baby and fortunately by the time I was in a lot of pain and really considered one, it was transition time and too late. I was feeling pressure for a while and I think I was fully dilated and ready to push but since it felt different from before I didn't think it was time. The nurse, who was really great, finally convinced me to let her check and I was in fact ready to start pushing. They got the doctor and a nurse for the baby and at 12:55 p.m. we met our little baby girl!

Emery was born with quite a lot of dark, almost black, hair and we were very surprised! She weighed 7 lbs. 11 oz. and was 20 inches long. It was just as amazing to see her for the first time as it was to see Adalyn! She was so beautiful. Finally I was able to meet the little girl whom I had felt kicking around in my tummy since 15 weeks. She was such a strong little kicker and squirmer and it is evident now by the way she straightens out those arms and kicks out those legs. Our sweet little daughter had arrived to join our family and we fell in love with her the second we saw her! We are truly so fortunate to have our healthy, beautiful daughters in our life and I feel so much love when I look at them.





We had kind of decided on her name just a few days before she was born. We had narrowed it down to two names and although we had both decided Emery was most likely the name for our baby girl, we looked at her when she was born and it definitely fit her! We had liked the name Emery for a few years. We heard it just a few weeks before Adalyn was born and thought, oh, we like that name, well, maybe next time... There was actually a baby girl born in the hospital the day after Adalyn and she was named Emery as well. We chose the middle name Jillian, which is an "elaborated" version of Jill, which is my mom's name and my middle name. It was also chosen to honor my late Grandma "Moe" Bernice. Although her name was not Jillian, she chose Jill to name my mom so we liked that the name she chose was getting passed on in a new version to a new generation. Emery already has a nickname, Emmy or Emmy J. which we think is really cute with Adalyn's nickname Addy :)

A few funny things happened during Emery's birth and our hospital stay. The 10th of February was a very popular day for births at Community Medical Center. I believe there were at least nine births that day. Usually, there are just a few births a day. The recovery rooms were quite full from a lot of previous births in the days before as well. After Emery was born I was told we would probably have to share a room. I was really dreading that but thankfully just a short time later my nurse told me that there was one open single room and it went to the mom and baby who delivered first. We beat out the room next door by only five minutes but that was enough to get our own room!
Another funny thing was when Emery was born, my doctor said that she bit him as he was delivering her!

Emery and I stayed in the hospital one night and we brought her home around five the next evening. We decided to have Jamey go home and stay with Adalyn but I wished we had made arrangements to have someone stay over at our house with her because it was really difficult for me to stay by myself. I only got about 2 hours of sleep that night so I was very glad to be going home the next day.

It is crazy to think that she is already 5 weeks old! The time has gone by so fast and we are really enjoying watching her grow and change.

Emery at one month old, she's tutu cute!

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Big Sister

Adalyn has been doing amazingly well in adjusting to her role as a big sister to Emery. She watches out for her and gets a little worried at times. We were waiting in the car the other day as Jamey ran into the grocery store after Emery's doctor appointment. Emery woke up and was crying because she was hungry. Adalyn got quite concerned and quickly told me, "Feed her, she's hungry!" Adalyn has been very patient when she has to wait for something when my hands are full and I am tending to Emery. She also helps retrieve things for me like Emery's diapers or blanket. Occasionally she wants our full attention and tells us to put Emery in her bassinet :) I am very impressed with how grown up Adalyn is and how well she has adjusted. When we were deciding when to have another child, it was a big concern of mine about how well Adalyn would adjust to having a sibling.



Over the months of my pregnancy, I really tried to explain things to Adalyn and show her photos of her as a baby and talk a lot about what kinds of things she did as a baby and what a new baby would be like. I am so proud of her comprehension and acceptance of Emery joining our family. I hope they grow up to be great playmates and lifelong friends. It already appears they are getting along great by the photos I've posted :) Adalyn is always "sharing" something with Emery and wants to give her toys so we have to make sure she is gentle with her sharing and she tries to be very careful.


Serving baby sis eggs and milk :)


Watching her after nap time


Sisters sharing a secret?

We have also been impressed with Adalyn working on using her potty chair. We weren't going to push or pressure anything with all of the changes in the house (Emery joining the family and the upstairs bathroom getting totally remodeled) but we have had a potty chair for quite a long time and I ordered a few potty books a few weeks ago. Adalyn had used the potty chair twice before Emery was born, probably by chance timing. The night we brought Emery home, Adalyn was getting ready for bed when she asked to use the potty chair and was successful! Since then, she has asked to use it on her own sometimes and she has spent a lot of time trying. She is very proud when she gets a sticker for her chart! I'm sure it will be quite a while before she is fully trained but we are very proud of her for trying it out now.


Our little character!

She is a typical two-year-old rascal at times and likes to push our buttons and test the limits but I am so very proud of her and how well she has adjusted these past few weeks!

Saturday, February 20, 2010

Emery Jillian Maxwell has arrived!


Emery was born on Wednesday, February 10th at 12:55 p.m. She weighed 7 lbs. 11 oz. and was 20 in. long at birth. She is very precious! We can't believe she is here and we are now a family of four! I will post more of her birth story when I get a chance. It has been a very hectic time trying to adjust to having a newborn and toddler as well as the upstairs bathroom still in the middle of a remodel. We are really enjoying the time together as a family though and will eventually get around to everything.

Emery's hospital announcement can be found here

The night before Emery was born, I was having some contractions and felt like we should take a few pics just in case it was the real deal :)


Adalyn sharing her special "Kitty Meow-Meow" with baby sister Emery


The four of us :) I look pretty exhausted after only two hours of sleep the night before!


Adalyn loving her baby sister