It's a BOY!

We still can't believe it.

I went into the hospital on Tuesday evening at 8 p.m., and

Thomas Christopher was born at 5:24 on Wednesday morning, January 27th.

I am stunned at how big he was. I was positive he was smaller than the other boys.

I think maybe I was just smaller this time.

Ask me how it feels not to be pregnant anymore.

Go ahead - ask me.

That's how.

(Whoa, look at those eyes - I definitely didn't get much sleep that night.)

Patrick is one proud papa - and a little in shock.

He was pretty convinced it was a girl too.

But no - here's our little puffy-faced boy a few hours after he was born.

Jack and PJ had been staying at my parents' house for a few days, since I had had more than a few false alarms that had me thinking I was in labor.

When the doctor gave us the okay to head in to be induced, I called Jack there and told him that the baby was going to be coming out that night. I promised I'd call him the next morning and let him know whether it was a boy baby or a girl baby.

At 7 a.m. that morning - just a short while after the baby was born - I did just that.

Here's how that call transpired:

Me: Jack, it's Mommy. The baby came out today!
Jack: Already?
(!?!?!?!?!?)
Me: Yes! Daddy is holding him. And guess what?
Jack: What?
Me: It's a little boy baby!
Jack: NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!
(Screaming, sobbing, dropping the phone and continuing while walking away)
I want it to be a little girl baby!

So...that went well.

I hoped that when he met little Thomas, things might be different.

I was right.

First, he saw that it was indeed a tiny little baby.

I think he equated a boy with another little brother the same size as PJ.
And Jack's a baby lover!

Then, this happened.

(This picture makes me cry a little.)

Then, he was thrilled to hold his baby brother.

PJ, also a baby lover, just went straight for the cuddle.

Then he was excited to see his little eyes and nose.

Some quiet time with my little guy this morning.

I love this one - the boys brought in some "Boys Rule" stickers for everyone and we put Thomas' on his bassinette
(though I have to admit the perfectionist in me wonders if they couldn't have asked someone with a little bit nicer handwriting to fill out the card).

Getting ready to head for home.

We are all doing well. The boys will spend one last night at my parents' house and give us a chance to settle in with Thomas. Then Patrick will go pick them up in the morning.

I can't wait to have all of them home together.
We are so blessed!

Due date

Well, here it is - yet another due date on which I am still pregnant.

The boys were both late, but this is different. With them, I didn't have nearly as many false alarms - hours and hours of regular contractions that ended up fizzling out, usually as soon as I call a neighbor or my parents to come and stay with the boys. This is infinitely more frustrating, mostly because so many more people are being affected.

From all the drama this little one has caused to date, I'm definitely thinking pink.

I appreciate all the votes for an early arrival.

I appreciate the vote for the due date arrival.
(Did I vote for that one myself? I may have, hoping beyond hope that this child
would inherit my own affinity for promptness.)

The day is still young...but this little one seems to be pretty darn comfortable in there.

And that's okay.

I won't be pregnant forever.

(Right??)

Guessing game

With nine days to go until my due date, I figured it was about time for another guessing game.

You know, the kind where you take a stab at when the baby might make an appearance, and how much s/he might weigh and I promise to write your name in a fancy font if you win!

How can you resist seeing your name posted online in a fancy font like I did for Aunt Devon when PJ was born?

You can't, right? I know!

So I posted a little poll over there on the right for the due date. Both Jack and PJ were latecomers (10 and 7 days, respectively - both were running on T-Time right from the start) and so I think I'll just be happy if this baby shows up in the month of January at all, but I have had lots more Braxton Hicks contractions than I did with PJ, so maybe this little one is planning to take after his Mommy and come on time or even a little early.

As for the weight, Jack was 8 lb. 5 oz, and PJ was 8 lb. 8 oz, and I have to say, I think I'm actually a little smaller this time around. I definitely don't weigh as much as I did when I was at the end of my pregnancies with them, and I didn't gain very much - only about 12 pounds according to this morning's OB visit. Which, I must say, is another thing that has me thinking pink.

So take your best (anonymous) guess at when the baby will come and leave a comment with your guess of the weight. I'll post the weight winner once s/he makes an entrance!

In a fancy font and everything!

The due date is January 24th, by the way.

Budding photographers

Whenever the camera comes out, the boys love to have a try taking pictures too. I show them which button to push and how to find what they're looking for on the screen of the digital camera, and then I just sort of let them have at it and don't touch it at all.

The other day, they snapped a few shots while we were playing in the hallway, and I was honestly a little surprised at how well they did for a three-year-old and a 21-month-old.

First, Jack took a photo of PJ.

Then one of PJ and Mommy together.

The concept of holding the button down for a few seconds to focus is not an easy one, but we're still working on it.

Then PJ took a few pictures of Jack.

I thought this one was especially impressive.



Finally, Jack wanted to snap a picture of his Handy Manny, so he posed him against the wall and got down in front of him for a good angle.


I'm looking forward to seeing how they continue to express their independence and creativity as they get older!

In other news, I'm 12 days away from my due date! I can't wait to meet this new baby, but I'm enjoying these last few days of just my boys. Jack is so excited to meet the baby, has conversations with him/her daily, and is really hoping for a little sister. He's got lots of questions about how the baby comes out and how I'm going to feed it. A little basic anatomy has answered most of his questions, as has the Usborne New Baby Sticker Book.

PJ just likes to say "Hi, baby! I'm your big brother, PJ!" to my belly every chance he gets. I'm 99% sure he has no idea that an actual baby is going to be coming out any day and rocking his toddler world. But he and Jack play together well (when they're not fighting over toys) and have transitioned well into sharing a bedroom, so it will be nice for them to have each other once the new babe arrives.

I can't believe that soon we'll be cuddling, dressing, smelling, kissing, and staring at a new little family member.

And I'm insanely anxious to know if it's a girl or a boy!

We're just praying for a safe delivery and a healthy baby.

(Oh, and if s/he slept through the night in the first week, I wouldn't complain either.)

37 weeks

At a little over 37 weeks, we're getting really excited to learn whether we're having another baby boy or a little girl!

Judging from the poll, I can see that most of you are thinking (or hoping) girl.


I'm not so sure. I love my boys. They're easy. I "get" them.

Plus, I already have everything I'd need.

Girls mean drama. I don't think I can handle having another person with PMS in the house.

But still, it might be fun to have a little girl...

And it would certainly be fun to be a little girl with these guys for big brothers.

We'll find out soon enough!

Baby bump

Baby T is due on January 24th. The above photo was taken at 20 weeks.

We can't wait to find out if it's a boy or a girl!

We can wait for the sleepless nights, so we've been praying since the + test that this babe might be one of those rare, sleeps-through-the-night-the-first-week-home children that you read about in fairy tales and legends.


30 weeks - pop!

35 weeks - maternity shirts are almost not long enough. Combine an already-long torso with a 52-inch waist (yes, I measured it. I have a love/hate relationship with my Mommy Measure - but love you, Pam!), and there are just not that many shirts up for the challenge. I refuse to have the belly sticking out like Rachel Green on "Friends," so I'm mostly resorting to extra-large baggy t-shirts. They're unflattering, but they cover the stretch marks.

It's hard to believe that it will only be about a month before we have a new family member!

25 weeks

This picture is from three weeks ago, but I still look about the same. It's hard to believe I'll be 25 weeks pregnant tomorrow!

And now that I'm finally feeling more "whenny" than "iffy" about the baby being born, I thought maybe it was time for another poll.

As you may or may nor know, we're not finding out the gender of this baby either. It was so exciting not knowing with PJ. And when he came out, the midwife said "It's a girl!" which totally shocked me because I was so sure it was another boy. Then, one second later, Patrick (who had a side view) said, "No, a boy! A boy!" and then I was shocked all over again. Those five seconds of excitement made the whole 41 (yes, 41) weeks of not knowing so worthwhile!

A few things have me mixed about this one. First of all, my nausea started sooner than it did with the boys, and it lasted much longer. I was queasy from about 5 weeks to 18 weeks. I'm also feeling much more uncomfortable in the...um..."chestular" area than I was with them. These things, combined with the fact that I'm much more emotional this time around (though that could be attributed to the sheer exhaustion that comes from being pregnant with two toddler boys), have me wondering if it's a girl.

However, at our 21-week ultrasound, the tech, in trying to get a better view of the spine (baby was being uncooperative) flitted oh-so-quickly past the baby's nether regions and both Patrick and I wondered if we'd seen a boy part.

It's hard to believe that in just 15 weeks - well, who am I kidding? More like 16 and a half weeks - we'll get to meet this new little person. What an amazing privilege it is.

Remind me of that about 6 weeks after s/he's born, will you?

Vote in the poll to the right and let me know if you think it's going to be another little boy Baby T for us (as is only fitting, as Patrick grew up in a household with SIX sisters!) or a little girl Baby T.

Cloth diapers

Anyone use cloth diapers? If so, which brand(s)/style(s) do you like?

I'm thinking of switching to cloth for baby #3 (pictures to come - just had an ultrasound on Thursday!) in an effort to cut down on expenses.

This quick post is to let you know about (and to enter myself for) a chance to win 6 cloth diapers from Bum Genius.

Click here and leave a comment to be entered!

Big News

Well, actually it's little. About the size of an almond, I think.

The real reason I haven't been posting much - in addition to the nice weather and the frolicking - is that we are expecting another baby! I'm eight weeks today and just had an ultrasound this morning to listen to the heartbeat and to make sure everything is a-okay.

It is!

We're so excited.