CARTER MICHAEL

It's been a long time since my last post and needless to say something very precious is the explanation behind the long delay.
















Carter Michael DeJong was born on May 28, 2009. He arrived at 12:29 pm. He was 7lb 5oz and 20 inches at birth. We had a scheduled C-section at noon (Josh was also a C-section baby). We were pleased to know that May 28 may have been Carter's arrival regardless as I began having contractions that morning.

Josh is already such a great big brother. This is a photo of him shortly after meeting Carter for the first time. He continues to give him kisses every day and tells us about 8 times each day that "he's so tiny".

Carter is now almost 6 weeks old already! I will have to post some more recent pictures soon. We have had a fantastic time with Mike home for the summer, family in town, time at the beach, and just enjoying time home as a family.

Baby Ready

Wow, it's hard to believe that nine months has gone by already, seriously! I know, I know, no one wants to hear it. Compared to Josh's pregnancy this one was a breeze. The hardest part is yet to come though, the c-section, but I am hoping and praying that because I won't labor the surgery and the recovery will be much easier this time around. Honestly, as long as we have a heathly baby, I will be happy!

As many of you know, we have no idea what gender the baby is. Mike was most ademant that we didn't find out, and I didn't mind either way. I've enjoyed not knowing, but have been quite anxious lately to find out what baby name we will be able to use. In preparing for the baby, I bought gender specific clothes this time around and have laid them out for the grandparents to bring to the hospital when we know pink or blue. I'll post pictures as soon as Josh wakes up from his nap. Hmmm, it could be cute to get a picture of him napping though. My little angel!

We finished up the last of the baby prep house work, pretty much a mad spring cleaning this weekend and are ready to relax and enjoy our summer at home with Josh and the new baby. Some of this prep included planting my garden, some flowers, painting an old windmill we have, and lots of other not so much fun things. Everyone, including the dog, got a hair cut. I love love love when Mike has a fresh hair cut. I miss the curls on Josh though, but am comforted to know that they will come back.

I'm not a big fan of taking pictures, so we only have some of me at the end of the pregnancy for you family members that would like to see the belly.

Mothers' Day

Today has been such a special reminder of why I am so lucky. Yep, being a mother definitely has its tough days, but it's the little things that make the difference. Like when Baby #2 kicks and I can tickle its feet, or when Josh comes up and gives me a huge hug and says, "I love you Mom!". These are the moments in life I treasure!
Today, Mike and Josh made cinnamon rolls and surprised me a special card that inside informed me that I have a future date night with Mike coming up. Hurray, I love date nights!!

I love being a mother, and a wife! I've have been blessed in so many ways! Thank you boys!

Counting down

Hurray, We are getting very excited for Baby #2s arrival. I have been so thankful that this pregnancy has gone so much smoother than Josh's did. So many things have been different about this pregnancy (morning sickness, reflux, cramps, weight gain, etc...), but one thing still remains, C-SECTION!
Mike and I took a tour of the new maternity ward at Redlands Community Hospital, not sure why considering all the new beautiful babies that have been born lately, but it was nice to hear some policy changes and just get a better feel for our surroundings. But as informative as the tour was...I had an anxiety attack. The rush of emotions that came over me while we are standing in the postpartum rooms was almost more than I could stand. Josh's C-section came rushing back to me. Mike is constantly comforting me and reminding me that this time will be very different though. I keep praying that he is right :)
No matter what happens during or after the surgery, we are going to meet our new little miracle. It's going to be so much fun to watch Josh as a big brother. Hurray for God's little miracles!
I'm hoping to post at least one photo of the my belly before we have the baby! So stay tuned

How to express one's self gracefully

It's been quite awhile since I've blogged, oops! I originally started b/c I thought this would help me write down my thoughts instead of always expressing them verbally. This truly has been a challenge for me.
I've learned a lot about myself through my marriage. Unfortunately, patience was never a practice in my family while growing up, but Mike and I, (more me than Mike) have tried diligiently to become more patient, graceful parents, friends and spouses.
Today, Josh has put my patience to the test! In fact, right now he is trying to convince me that he woke up from his nap. Silly me, I didn't realize you could sing and sleep :) ! I've tried taking away his juice and Lighting McQueen (yep, I said it), but he seemed Okay with both, infact he handed them to me. There's a part of me that thinks he may be over naps, but that quickly disapates when he lays on the couch and says he's tired.
I've read articles that tell you to keep bringing them back to their beds. Clearly these authors have never met my son, b/c I tried that for his bed time and it literally took months to get him to stay in his bed.
It's funny how the smallest things sometimes seem the most tramatic... until we forget about them an hour later :)
Sometimes I just have to laugh b/c it really is a silly situation!!!

Goteen

Josh has come up with a new word, "Goteen". We are working on counting to 20, and he just loves to race his cars around the house, so he has now combined the them to get, "3,2,1 goteen"! It's pretty cute!