life with a new baby...

those first couple weeks at home are such a blur...  feeding a baby every 3 hours and trying to sleep in between is pretty tricky... not to mention i don't love nursing and dont have the easiest time doing it.  after about 5 weeks chris and i decided that it was best for my sanity and for the health of the family that we just switch to formula feeding.  david didn't notice any difference when we switched to formula and really preferred the bottle anyway.  daniel has been an incredible brother.  so gentle and sweet with david.  loves to sit by him while he's playing to just keep an eye one him.

i amazingly recovered from the c-section very fast.  i only took medication for a couple days and then just IB profen was enough after that.  i was up and around no problem which was so nice.

we just love this sweet little old man baby.... so far his hair is lighter in color... blonde-ish red-ish brown-ish, but i'm convinced his eyes are blue... really pretty blue. he's still mostly bald on top which enhances his little old man look... hopefully it grows back in all craszy like daniel's.

trying out my new solly baby wrap.  its super soft and light weight.  nice to snuggle with the baby.

here's daniel playing really close to his brother.  its so cute that he wants to be near him so much.

love the sleepy smiles...

"hello baby david"  and yes that is his current name... baby david.

this month was also father's day... for father's day i gave chris another son.. haha and i got him this amazing home made cake by our friend sarah from church... she also made our wedding cake... seriuosly so good!!! so rich and the cake is just to die for!!!

I also decided to go to church the next week after david was born.  i was feeling so good and was bored being stuck at home all the time so we all got dressed up and went to church.  the consensus from everyone was "wow he's so tiny!!" which weighing in at 5 pounds,.. yes he is tiny! 

me and my boys having cuddle time.

burrito baby.... 

i do love how much he sleeps... hopefully he ends up being a good sleeper like daniel!

daniel is so entertaining... his imagination is just exploding these days... it started with the gloves on his hands and feet to make a lizard... this time it was daddys socks on his hands and legs to make a spider... 

he also loves daddy's shoes and will often walk around the house with them on.  he also became fascinated with putting stickers on his chest after he saw me put some soothie pads on my chest from nursing david... hahaha!! 

smiles!!!

first real bath... and yes his skin turns that red when he really cries and then it goes back to normal... doc says its normal.... haha but needless to say he did not like his first time in the bath.... daniel however loved whating it.

i had fun taking newborn pics of daivd and a few of daniel with him.  i still haven't perfected taking pics yet but i'm getting better at it and getting better at editing after.  i also decided not to take the typical naked newborn photos since my baby is so long and skinny he just doesn't look super cute and cuddly like most naked babies... so i found this super cute anchor outfit which i love too as a little nod to our navy days...

seriously this super cute face just kills me.. 

life as a family of four is pretty awesome so far.  and chris is the best dad ever!!! he plays so hard with daniel and works really hard to help me with whatever i need... getting food, feeding the baby, changing diapers, cleaning.... and just being supportive of me and whatever i may be struggling with at the time.  i expected to be really overwhelmed at first having more than one child but with daniel being such a good independent kid and baby david being a dream baby i feel like i could have a million more children... (i'm actually too old to have a million babies but a couple more would be nice!)

meet david owen spillers...

here i am at 37 weeks pregnant...  at this point i have only gained 30 pounds which is awesome considering i gained twice that with daniel.  and in the last 2 weeks i have started to have that lovely puffy face look from water retention.  people are always surprised when i say i'm almost done cause they think i look really small to be 9 months pregnant... i feel huge but i must carry the baby far back or something.

at my dr's appointment this week (37 weeks) right when he put the doppler on my belly to check baby's heart beat it dropped really low... like to 80 bpm normally it is at least 120 bpm. i was having a big contraction when it happened so he got a little concerned since it stayed low for a little while.  he put me on the monitor for about 2 hours but it never happened again.  the baby's heart rate stayed normal for every other contraction.  that night I could hardly sleep.  worried as i was having some really big contractions.  nothing regular for me to think i was in labor. but they were pretty bad.  the next day my sister and i went to lunch to macayos (mexican resturant) with some friends and after we stopped at her house so i could borrow a doppler she had that someone gave her.  i laid on the couch during contractions and would put the doppler on my belly.  sure enough once or twice his heart beat would drop really low.  i started to get nervous when it happened more than once.  when chris got home i told him i thought it was time to go to the hospital cause something just didnt feel right.  

we got to the hospital and they found a bed for me to lay on while they watched the monitors... the maternity ward was packed... kinds like there was no room at the inn.. haha.  they had to call in nurses that weren't even on call to come in and help.  after being on the monitor there for about 2 hours sure enough the baby's heart beat dropped twice.. and once really low like 75 bpm and stayed there for 5 min.  at that point a bunch of nurses rushed in and started getting me ready as we were having that baby tonight and my doctor was on his way in.  it was a little scary and exciting.  scary thinking something could be wrong with the baby or hurting him and exciting to no longer be pregnant and get to meet the little guy.  

they gave chris his gown and started stripping me down... man being in a hospital there is no room for modesty and shyness.. luckily i'm not really a shy modest person but it still seemed funny to me to have all these people standing around while nurses and chris tried to help... naked!!!! haha emily was there with us since my mom was home watching daniel.  she took these hilarious pics for us.

i was also nervous to get the spinal block.  when i had daniel it took the anesthesiologist 6 tries... he stuck me 6 times trying... so i told the guy this time that had happened and he got it done the first try no problem.  thank goodness!!!! the only funny thing was the nurse who was helping me and holding my head on her shoulder while the dr worked smelled like cigarettes and perfume... haha my pregnant nose was loving that.... otherwise she was a very nice nurse.  

once they got everything set up they let chris come in... (he had been previously just standing in the hallway with the doors open so he knew everything going on before) and everyone got to work.  chris stood and watched the whole surgery... gross! but he loved it.  i could actually see a lot of what they were doing in the light above my head, but decided not to really look until the baby was coming out.  its so fast from the first cut to the baby coming out.... like 5 min.  really fast.  and it was so fun seeing him come out... he started crying... or squealing like a little pig.  so sweet and funny.  i got choked up.  then they bring him around the curtain all gross so i can see him. 

then they take him over and clean him up and weigh him.  5 pounds 13 oz  19 or 20 inches (i can't really remember)

then they brought him back over to me right next to my face so i could get a good look and give him some kisses.  i got to see him for a while as they were still waiting for someone from nursery to come over with a bed and get him.  it was so sweet... he was soooo tiny! i guess its now fact that chris and i make tiny babies.. 

then the boring part starts for me where they stitch me up for like 30 min or so.  it seems like forever.  the weirdest part is not being able to move from the lower chest down.  they pick you up with a sheet and slide you to the next bed... they also didn't have a room ready yet so they took me back to the area where they had monitored me for my recovery.  

meanwhile chris went off with the baby and watched as they gave him shots and bathed him.  my OB said he couldn't see why his heartbeat was dropping... normally its a sign that there's a pinch or knot in the umbilical cord or something wrong with the placenta but mine all looked good.  he was baffled why it was happening.  but he was really glad that i came in... really glad.  yay for crazy mom instincts that tell us something is wrong ( or also probably the holy ghost whispering to me that somethings not right). 

this picture does not do justice to how purple his hands and feet were... like bright purple. (its normal)

by midnight that night we were finally in a room... all 3 of us. 

i was so hot in the room... we had it as cold as it would go but from the meds and anesthesiology and hormones i was just sweating to death.  chris of course was freezing... haha  he was still able to easily sleep but it was really cold.   i was also crazy itchy from the spinal block... like crazy itchy!!!! first it was my head and face. pretty soon by the next day it had gone all the way down my body.  all i wanted to do was scratch constantly.. 

little old man face... 

proud daddy.... 

the hospital gave us this cute shirt for daniel... 

we had finally decided to officially name him David Owen Spillers.  David after Chris' dad and Owen after my dad.  

daniel was so funny meeting him for the first time.  he kept calling him baby david... but once my mom opened up the blanket and he saw the umbilical cord he was freaked out... he did not like that thing on the belly button.... 

 my face also got huge the next day from all the IV they pumped into me... like seriuosly huge.  we were laughing so hard at my giant face.  i'm a little sad now that we didnt' take a photo when it was at its worst.

emily and amanda also came by to meet baby daivd.  emily loved his long skinny legs that he kept kicking straight out into the air.  amanda was so cute holding him.  

we definitely love this little guy.  my recovery was also pretty amazing.  and i was determined to get out of the hospital as fast as i could.  i never sleep well there.  my doctor gave us the ok to go home so we were on our way out before it was even 48 hours post birth.  go me!!

the hospital also does this fun special dinner for you and your spouse before you leave the hospital.. they come and set it all up cute and fancy.  they gave us this little cake, sparkling cider, steak dinner, cheese cake for dessert and a rose.  it was pretty good and fun little treat for us before we headed home.  

then we loaded up our tiny little man into his carseat... super tiny!!! it was really nice to pick up daniel from my mom and head home to start family life as a family of four.  

excited to have our baby david home with us.  can't believe his due date wasnt for 3 more weeks... and his surgery was scheduled for 2 weeks away.  

last days as a family of three...

june started off pretty normal.  chris went to work a couple times a week, daniel and i pretty much just stayed home... i'm super prego and its so hot outside that we try not to leave the house too often.  daniel enjoys being at home especially now that he has all his toys back in one room.  he also still loves to be in only a diaper all day long... everyday.  he's been having a good time taking baths in our big bath in the master bathroom... bubbles and all.  i like it cause it occupies him for a long time... we have also had a good time venturing out and figuring out where things are around us and how to get to them all.  thank goodness for phones and navigation... seriously helps getting places easier.

Daniel found the baby bath and decided it was a boat... he sits in it a lot and just reads books or plays on his little phone (my old broken phone that just has his games on it now)  and he pushes it all over the house.

he loves playing with cousin axel... they are awesome together... they run all over chasing each other... they laugh... they jump on mom's trampoline... they play cars together.  truly two peas in a pod.

we also  found this neat park that had a fun little splash pad.  we let daniel run around for a while in his pullup... he was a little scared to actually run in the water and get wet but he loves to run near it and maybe stick a hand in it here and there... funny cautious kid.

we were expecting to have our new little baby on June 19th for my scheduled c-section but he decided he had other ideas.... to be continued....

final move to vegas month...

i was very excited for may to come as it meant we were moving back to las vegas finally.  when we moved to north carolina 3 years ago i was excited for the adventure of living somewhere totally different and new... and we met some amazing people and had some good fun for sure! loved the southern culture and military life.... but once we knew we were moving home... i was so excited... it took me a bit to get used to the idea of making a 6 month pit stop in tucson but i just had to tell myself it was just 6 months... and it really did go by fast.... and now here it is... the month of may.  i packed up what we had taken with us to AZ... most of our stuff was still in vegas in storage in my grandpas backyard... it only took us one uhaul and our minivan to get everything back to vegas,  our home teachers came and helped chris load the truck as i was at this point very pregnant... 8 months pregnant... i can pack boxes but thats about it.  we also had my dad fly down to tucson to help me drive the minivan back. i was having a hard time driving lately as i was having the worst dizzt spells and blackouts... (i think its because i have super low blood pressure).  chris drove the moving truck with his car in tow and dad and i rode in the minivan... daniel ended up mostly riding in the truck with his dad. every little boys dream.  the drive was slow but good.

first to see las vegas!!! (family inside joke)  once we pulled in we went straight to our new house we are renting.  its a super cute neighborhood.  almost looks like southern homes with houses with siding and porches.  my brother lives up the street from us and emily lives in the gated community next door... literally out our gate and into hers.  jack and greg came over and helped us unload the first batch of stuff.  we got the beds set up and essentials going so we could go to church the next day.  after church we went to the barn at grandpas to load up the rest of the stuff, then jack and greg came and helped load up that load and by the time we got to the house greg had a ton of men from the ward out to help us unload it.  i stood at the door and told them where to take things.  they had the whole thing unloaded in 30 min.  it was amazing! really nice way to feel welcomed to the ward.  the next month was spent unpacking organizing and cooking a baby....

i also finally got the baby crib put together and sewed some really cute bedding for it.  i also made a cushion cover for the rocking chair and curtains.  I got really lucky and found this awesome dresser for sale on our neighborhood garage sale site on facebook... it was already painted white and grey which perfectly matches the baby's room so i bought it... super cheap nice but solid wood.  it all turned out way cute...

daniel has been really cute getting excited for the baby.  he has this baby pluto doll and he would carry it everywhere and talk to it and cuddle it... push it around in the stroller super cute...

daniel is also loving the new house for two big reasons.. one: everyday at like 5 the neighborhood comes alive with kids playing everywhere, riding bikes, scooters, and people on walks... and two: his bedroom has a deep window seat.. he sits there for long periods of time... like over an hour just watching the neighborhood.  the cars that go by, etc...

his other favorite game this month is to be a lizard... or as he says it "wizard"  he puts these gloves of mine on his hands and feet and crawls all over on all fours.  sometimes he puts them on our feet and makes us be the lizard.

he also gets lots of opportunity to play with amanda at antie em's house.  for a while he was still calling amanda "a beta" but it now sounds like amanda.  

he was so funny one day and would not take off this hat and the gloves... wore them everywhere... its nearly 100 outside... but he doesn't care. haha funny kid

we've needed new couches ever since we moved to north carolina, but with moving so much we decided to wait, and now the only couch we had was gross so we decided it was time for new ones.  we found this awesome small grey couch at rc willey clearance center and it was so cheap!!! and then i spotted this turquoise rocking chair recliner.... i love them... and i love them even more for being on sale and super cheap!! 

it was fun to find a pink box doughnuts right near our house.. its sooooo good which is so bad for this super prego mom... but we enjoyed the occasional morning breakfast there... it was closed by the end of the month which is just as well...  

daniel also ate cereal with milk for the first time ever... it was amazing! i was so proud.  haha

we also got to go to the childrens museum with meesha and her kids one day... i asked chris to go with us so he could crawl around and play with daniel... its a little tough being so huge prego... they had a great time...  

chris found this HUGE black widow in the garage while he was organizing and cleaning it.  the whole house had a terrible cockroach problem... i called my friend who does pest control and had them come spray... it was sooooo gross the first time he came.... the next morning there were hundreds.... HUNDREDS of dead roaches in the gutter of the street.  and right after he sprayed in the back yard it was like a mass exodus of roaches trying to escape the poison... running into the sliding glass door... dead all over... so gross.... and freaky.  thats what happens when a house site empty for a long time... inside wasn't terrible.... they had painted the whole place and put in new carpet which probably helped with the bug problem.  

chris started working at the office we are planning on purchasing in january... he really likes it .  the staff is awesome and the environment is really nice..... here is holly the office manager and kim the front office staff/ assistant.  and below is fred the awesome assistant.  chris really loves working with them. 

for memorial day we went out as a family to visit all our family graves.  mom brought bubbles and she had already put out flowers before when she went out with aunt joanie.  i will say it is always a little hard or sad to visit.... grandpa's still seems so recent... he was such a big presence in our lives that it is really noticeable and hard to think of him gone... and my two aunt's we visited there were both just so young... too young.  glad they are in a beautiful place with our heavenly father but wish there were here instead.   

may was a good month that seemed to fly by with trying to get things ready for the baby next month.  June can't come soon enough!!!