6 weeks old

Miss Z is now 6 weeks old! Time goes by too quickly. We love her so much. What a wonderful addition to our family. Its like we never were without her!

Rose turns 2

Our little girl is two years old! We had a nice party with family and friends. We made Rose a pig cake because she loves pigs. I can't believe she is two. Here are a few things that make Rose so special...

-She has the biggest vocabulary of any two year old I have ever met and speaks mostly in complete sentences.

-She has a nervous finger suck when approached by new people but give her 15 minutes and you can be her best friend.

-She holds, rocks, feeds, changes diapers, and puts her baby dolls to bed just like they were real babies.

-She is so sweet with her new sister and already loves her so much.

-She can go 7 hours in a car without sleeping and then fall asleep when we are minutes away from grandma's house, (on multiple occasions.)

-She already has much to say about what clothes she will wear and sometimes puts up a fight.

-She will eat anything dipped in ketchup or ranch, like strawberries, pancakes, eggs... if she can pick it up she will dip it.

-She loves to sing and knows Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, Old MacDonald, ABCs, Row Row Rows Your Boat, and Baa Baa Black Sheep

1 day old.

Clapping after singing Happy Birthday at 1st birthday party.

Singing Happy Birthday at 2nd birthday party.

Miss Z is here!

Miss Z (see facebook or leave your email if you want her full name) entered the world on Dec 2nd at 10:17am.

This labor and delivery was much quicker and easier than Rose. I started to have good contractions Wednesday morning but nothing really substantial until around 2:30am on Thursday when I knew that this was it. I had to get to the hospital early to have antibiotics because I was Group B strep positive so at 4:30am when contractions were 4-5 mins we left. I wanted a natural birth but just couldn't get relaxed or in the right frame of mind so at around 7 I had an epidural. I was only 6-7 cm then. At 9am the doc checked me at 7cm and broke my water. Miss Z still had to turn 50 degrees so we thought it might be a little longer but at 10am I was ready to push.

Only a half dozen contractions and pushes later and Miss Z was born at 7lbs 4oz and 19 3/4 inches long. She has a full set of dark hair, blue eyes, my nose, long Milmonster fingers and toes, and the tiniest head. I'm already in love with this beautiful angel. Breastfeeding has been a lot easier this time around but she is a little colicky so we are trying to get through that.

My recovery has been so much quicker than the last time and I am thankful for that considering the hardest part about having another child is still being a great mom to the first. Rose is adjusting and I'm thankful my mother was here to help and the Hub's mom is here now.

I would love any advice on how to coop with two!

The other day during nap Rose reached an entire bottle of baby soap and poured it all over her bed, her self, and took a waterless bath. Funny and I can laugh about it but not something I needed to deal with right now. She isn't sleeping or eating well and is very irritable. Poor girl. Also, pretty sure Rose gained about 20 pounds while we were in the hospital! She is no longer my little baby girl compared to little Miss Z.

Rose after her waterless bath.

Family Pictures

More family pictures. We wanted some while our family was only three and we will take some more with the new baby. It was a very cold fall day and Rose was not that happy but we did get some great shots. Thanks Matt!

Belly Shots and Studying

Some of the most recent belly shots posted by popular demand. Rose loves to hug and kiss on baby sister. Only 3 more weeks and I am not ready to be a mom again. To be completely honest, I am terrified, anxious and scared out of my mind. With the hub gone most of the time and Rose not even 2, I am trying to not imagine how hard things will get around here. I received some strength today however at stake conference. One of the talks was about giving to the Lord all that you have (even if it is only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fishes) and He will provide all the rest that is needed. I think if I hold onto this hope all will be fine.

Studying anatomy with papa. He uses Rose as a model and she tries to help by saying the scientific words back to him. Too cute.

Camping and Halloween

In September Rose and I went back to Wyoming for a little family time. We went camping with my dad's family and had a great time. Rose did great at the campsite. She chased dear, went on walks, and stayed away from the fire. Here we are with grandparents and Uncle Chris. Rose only likes my mom when she's around.

Hiking with grandpa to his old childhood cabin. It was fun to see where my dad spent time in the summers.

Reading by the campfire.

Walking my cousin's dog, Bailey.

Happy Halloween!!!

Carving and painting pumpkins with Colt and Leslie.

(notice my Spooky sign on my homemade shelf)

Rose did not like the slimy pumpkin.

I really wanted to make costumes again this year but despite my efforts I decided to take naps with Rose instead of sewing. So, we borrowed cookie monster and elmo from our neighbors and I made an easy felt cookie for the belly and a trick or treat bag for Rose.She really didn't know what to think at first but once she realized she could get candy she was well into the Halloween spirit.

Only 4 more weeks until Baby #2 arrives!

The Rest of our Summer Vacation

So, I really want to post about the rest of our family vacation so here it is. We went to Steamboat Springs for my grandma's 80th birthday and grandparent's 60th anniversary. Here is my entire family on my mom's side, including my cousin who I had to photoshop in. If you look closely you can totally tell who it is.

The hub's new favorite game, Kubb.

Here is Rose with my grandma, her namesake. And yes, she is picking her nose.Rose decided to potty train herself while we were gone. AWESOME. However as soon as we got home she was uninterested. Oh well. You have to love the poop picture.My dad got a new car. Rose thought it was nice too!

After being home for quite some time we headed to Bozeman, MT for the Hub's cousin's pre-wedding party. And yes, there was a slip and slide. The boys made this gigantic 50 foot slide, lubed up with dish soap and freezing cold water and raced down. It was not on a slope so you really had to get a running start. The hub was sore for a few days after from landing on his chest 20 times. Rose took a turn and didn't like it as much as the boys.

After Bozeman we headed home for 17 hours of car time. Tired and ready for a break, we stopped at Mount Rushmore. And yes, Rose is picking her nose, again:)

She decided to do some acrobatics for picture time. We had such a great time with family and friends. Now that the hub has started dental school I am looking forward to family vacations every summer.