Halloween Fun

Monday morning I woke up to two trick or treaters at my bed.  They were literally yelling "trick or treat."  Cadynce and Donnie were a little excited, and a little disappointed to find out they had to wait all day before we could put our costumes on and go out.  When it was finally time, my "football game", Ariel, and my little red pepper headed out with our baskets ready for candy.  Cadynce ran everywhere, Donnie screamed "I got a sucker" at every house, and Colbie slept...as usual.  We just went around our neighborhood loop then called it a night.  View Album for more pictures.

Air Show

Saturday morning Don took Cadynce and Donnie to the Air Show before it opened so he could see the tent he had set up for work.  The kids had a blast in their coats and hats, and they were able to sit in several air planes.  We went as a family on Sunday to see the Blue Angels.  Cadynce and Donnie loved the show and really loved their ear plugs!  Colbie slept through it all in my front carrier.  View Album for more pictures.

Colbie: One Week

Colbie is a week old.  She is such an easy baby right now, and I'm enjoying every minute.  She is sleeping great and eating when she isn't sleeping.  She has just started to stay awake for about an hour.  Cadynce and Donnie are really enjoying her too.  They think every little face she makes is hilarious and they have a million questions.  They take turns holding her and smothering her with kisses.  Colbie is very loved around here.  She just had her one week check up at the doctor and weighed 7 pounds 7.5 ounces (70%).  She was 19 3/4 inches long (70%).  We are off to a good start!

School Parade

Cadynce had her storybook character parade at school.  She was so excited to dress up as Ariel and wear her red wig.  We signed her in at school and then waited in the pumpkin patch for the kids to come march around and show us their costumes.  Cadynce had the biggest smile on her face the entire time.  View Album for more pictures.

We're Adjusting

Colbie is five days old and changing fast.  She sleeps a lot right now and is eating quite well (maybe she'll be higher than the 10th percentile at her checkups).  Cadynce and Donnie are getting better every day (it was a rough few days), and we're figuring out life with a 4 year old, 2 year old, and an infant.  Thankfully the infant is easy, it's the other two that keep us on our toes.  View Album for more pictures.

Singing to Colbie

A Different Experience

Things did not go like I planned...at all.  Here's the whole story.

My mom arrived a week before my due date because I have a history of going into labor early.  I felt relieved when she made it and I was still pregnant.  Little did I know that I would not go into labor and I would "have" to be induced.  Monday before my due date I made a visit to my doctor and we decided to schedule my induction for the next morning.  I got a phone call Tuesday morning from the hospital telling me they bumped me because there were too many people and not enough room for me.  I thought for sure I was going to go into labor...I was wrong.  Wednesday morning we headed to the hospital for my induction and boy was that a different feeling.  I'm usually in full blown labor when driving to the hospital praying I don't have the kid in the car.

It was the most relaxing and enjoyable birth experience I've had.  We arrived at the hospital at 5:30 am and they got me right into a room and started preparing for the induction to begin.  At 6:15 am they started the Pitocin and 30 minutes later my contractions started.  Contractions were every two minutes and when they started getting stronger I received my first epidural.  It was really crazy hanging out completely pain-free while my body was preparing to give birth.  Don and I just hung out and watched tv and talked about what a different experience this was compared to our last two.  I texted, emailed, and talked on the phone.  Crazy!  I almost laughed when my nurse told me to lay back and take a nap.  I had to ask if she was serious.  At 11 am I told them I needed to push and they called my doctor and prepped for baby's arrival.  My doctor was there in minutes and Colbie was born at 11:13 am with only 5 pushes to get her out.  It was not in my birth plan to be induced and I never wanted to have an epidural, but it worked out much better than any plan I have ever made (given my history, I don't plan well!)  It was really nice to have my doctor there to deliver Colbie.  It was an overall great day...one worth waiting for.  View Album for more pictures.

Heroes of the Day

What an amazing day!  We welcomed Colbie Jade Clark to our family - and I think she already has her Daddy wrapped around her tiny little finger.  I'll leave it to Jackie to dive into all the specifics, but after just 4 pushes and at 11:13am, all 7 lb 5 oz and 19 inches of Colbie was born. All I can say is that Jackie's strength amazes me.

Cadynce and Donnie were literally bouncing off the walls with excitement as they met their new Baby Sis for the first time.  An now Colbie knows who was making all that muffled noise she could hear in the womb!!

Click here to see a few pictures - we'll be sure to upload more in a few days.

Waiting for Baby...

Here's what's been going on the past week while we await baby girl's arrival.  View Album for more pictures.

Some Videos of Donnie

Donnie's Cast is Off!!

Today we took Donnie back to the doctor to get his cast off.  We've been talking about it for a couple of days now, and talking about how he might feel silly when he tries to walk.  We were unsure how he would react to getting it off.  I've talked to several people and many of them said it took a few days before their child would even attempt to walk.  Well, I should have known that my little boy wouldn't be fazed by getting his cast off.  He just sat on the table while they cut it off, and had a huge smile on his face when he saw his leg.  He stood up on the table while holding on to Dad to test it out.  He wanted to get down on the ground and walk so we gave it a try.  Of course, he slowly limped over to the chair and then continued going back and forth.  He lost his balance a couple of times trying to go too fast.  The doctor came in to look at his x-ray and told us it might take a few days to walk...we laughed and said he'd been walking for the last 10 minutes.  They cleaned up his leg and we got his socks and shoes on and headed out the door.  We were the last people to leave for the day so many of the workers were in the hall as Donnie came walking out.  They were all so impressed with him and gave him a little cheer.  The doctor couldn't help but smile when he saw the fearlessness of Donnie and said, "I'm impressed."  That's my boy!!  We got home and filled up the bath tub for his first real bath in three weeks.  He stayed in for an hour playing and swimming around.  After his bath we enjoyed some ice cream and watched Donnie walk around and climb on and off the bed as if nothing ever happened.  Now the real challenge begins as we have to keep a close eye on him for the next three weeks to make sure he's not jumping or engaging in any risky behavior.  View Album for more pictures.

The Flood of 2011

Last Sunday evening we came home to a flooded house.  There was about an inch of water throughout the kitchen and front hallway.  All the carpet in our house was ruined and needs replaced, and some of the walls were damaged as well.  Help came within an hour and stayed for three hours getting our house as dry as possible.  Monday we accumulated 25 blowers and de-humidifiers running which completely dried out our house to the point we had to leave.  We stayed two nights in a hotel because our house was unbearable to be in.  Thursday morning they removed all the machines.  We are in a little bit of a time crunch with baby #3 quickly approaching her due date so we have to get this house ready...now.  We have already started with the removal of our carpet and the nasty tile we have wanted out of our house since we bought it.  Our house is totally torn apart right now so let's hope this baby can hold off at least another week.  View Album for more pictures.