Seven Eleven

This is not a post about slurpies...but rather the fact that my tiny baby has gained a pound since we left the hospital. I know that happens with babies, and I am very thankful she is growing, and there are lots of people whose kids are bigger than 7.11 when they are born, but I'm still sad. So that's just how it is. But, someday soon she will be cute and edible like this...

so I guess it's ok.

This picture gave me a frightening feeling about her being a teenager. Or even 9. I don't know why I just feel like she looks old here. (Do you think I need to see a counselor?! The crazy postpartum woman who wouldn't let her kids grow up?)
This is her personality in one picture. Sneaky. And really cute. And sometimes not as cute.

Look! Our family pictures are improving!! At least the smiles, unfortunately a little blurry, but who cares. We look happy. :)


Bedtime snack. Nothing like a good picture with food in your mouth. You can thank me later, ladies.
I have to say, 3 is going really well. I'm sure I will disagree with myself soon, but for now-I'm very thankful. And very happy. And very tired.

Give me literacy, or give me death.

Sticking together as they decide about the new addition. While excited about the baby, Ava also stated: "I already have a sister, her name is Kaiya." Hmm. Sorry babe.

My ROCKSTAR husband...who swaddles the best, takes nonstop care of all the other girls' needs, lets me sleep, and still works a full day at his other job. He's got the magic touch with all the ladies in this house. :)
Chatting with Oma who arrived today.
This cracks me up. No, not the fact that I don't have a boppy cover for this poor baby, but just the face where she looks like she is explaining things to us.
My sweet friend Kim came to visit and took some pretty pictures of our little beauty!!
Pretty much Kaiya doesn't care who we bring home from the hospital. She cares about Elmo.
My nephew Q chasing bubbles with Ava.
But the reason for the title: these girls LOVE to read. I like to think this is because I was an elementary teacher and I advocate literacy. But you notice there is not one picture of me reading to the girls.

3 under 3: Day 4.

I feel like I can't compete with Mark's previous post, so I'm just going to post some pictures and leave it at that. We are loving our new little bundle, and 3 kids feels complete. Although if anyone is particularly nocturnal and wants to come over from say 2-4am, please feel free.

Melinda sharing a baby name book with us while we waited.

My last Diet Coke for 24 hours. Dramatic. Been meaning to talk about how much I heart the heart cans. So cute.
Aunt Lindy cuddling baby Reese.
ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY. (more on the girls and their adjustment in another post.)

I wonder if the Duggar's still feel a little nervous driving away with a newborn baby each time. I always do.
Cute.
Cute.
Cute.

Reese Anderson

Welcome to my once-a-baby post, loyal readers. As you know, the only time I am allowed to touch the blog is when my wife has a baby and is unable to get to the computer, so I will be your guide for all the gory details....which traditionally men are very poor at reporting. (and if I really did give you the gory details, I would be sleeping in the garage for sure...)

The first image for your enjoyment is my wife before she put on the awesome gown. She wanted to get one last picture of her pregnant stomach. The room was great, the focal point was a large picture of 3 teddy bears dressed in pioneer-era clothes, having a picnic with a black lab. Yep, you read that right.

Obviously there were several cords & machines that I had to make sure were hooked up right, so I went ahead and threw on some of the blue gloves and did a quick inspection.

A few hours after the pitocin drip started, our pregnant camper was getting a little antsy.

Several things happened between the picture above and the picture below that sent us into a whirlwind C-section. Feel free to contact Heidi directly for the details.

On our way.....

This one is actually taken in the OR....there may be some laughing gas involved in the lower picture, because I can assure you that if she saw what was happening on the other side of the curtain she would not be smiling......

Here she is!!! Our first picture with Reese....(hair caps to be auctioned off at a later date)

A few hours later in Aunt Lindy's arms.

A very eventful day! We are thankful to God for a healthy baby girl.

The Stats:

Reese Anderson DeKorne

March 11, 2010 (Shout out to our friends that share the same b-day!)

7lbs 4 oz

21 inches

Well, this is goodbye, you will most likely never hear from me again. Most of my free time will now be spent doing odd jobs so that I can pay for 3 weddings. If anyone needs minor plumbing, computer repair or gardening work done please let me know. I also have been practicing my old trombone if you need some easy listening music as the backdrop to your next formal event.

Love to you all~

Father of 3

Sugar, oh honey honey...

As I approach the size of an aquatic mammal, I have decided bringing in help with the kiddos makes life much more enjoyable. :)

I still took a turn every once in awhile, too :) I am going to miss the shelf!
Who needs Julia Child. We have our own chef Christina. She is starting Ava at a young age with pizza crust. Complete with real yeast and a rolling pin and everything. It's nice for her because with me for a mama Domino's is the only crust she would otherwise know!


We celebrated Megan's birthday with the fabulous Funfetti cake. I know this isn't the best picture of the celebration, but Sugar in the picture made me laugh.
Also the boys were kind to help Mark paint Sugar's room. There is a little discrepancy on how many times they have in fact painted this room, but we'll just say it wasn't the first.

Before:

After.

We are waiting on accessories until we find out the gender of this sweet baby. A BIG huge thanks to Aunt Ann for providing our third baby with cute bedding! We LOVE it!

External Cephalic Version

Doesn't that sound lovely? I went to the dr. last week and Sugar (Ava's definite name for the baby) was upside down for the trip out. So, we went to the hospital bright and early the next morning to have the baby turned. It was a little more intense than I realized...I.V., an anesthesiologist in there the whole time, a couple dr's, and lots of warnings from people about how awful it was.

Thankfully, Sugar turned with little effort and is still in the proper position for exit. Thank you, God! Sadly, Mark and I saw the 6:45 a.m. time together as kind of a date. (Thanks to my fabulous sister!)

Success!
Ahhhh, Diet Coke. I was forbidden to eat or drink before the big flip.
Since we are kind of maxed out right now in terms of what we can handle, Mark just went ahead and made sure we weren't expecting any more surprises. Thankfully, he was all clear.