just a few pictures

Here are just a few pictures from this past weekend...



Getting ready to go to Scot's Uncle's house for dinner - amazing!!


The happy - if a little sleep deprived - family


And sometimes when we're working really hard around the house, this is the way Evan sleeps.

Otherwise, we are doing really well. Getting back into the swing of things today after our crazy day yesterday where Evan slept all day (and then was up all night...) - but like I said, we're getting back to normal today. It still amazes me how their little bodies can only take so much change at once.

The house is also getting into order. I think our rooms will be the last to get organized, but even they are starting to shape up. The main level is all done minus pictures being on the wall, but, I do know where I want some pictures hung, so that's a start. The downstairs will take a while to put together I think since we still have the futon to get for down there and a bookcase for all our books. That being said, all our books will remain in the boxes until we get said bookcase. BUT, Scot and I did have a mini date night the other night and watched a movie down there and it was great! (For those of you who don't know, Scot and I have lived without a TV for the last 2 years. And while we really enjoyed it and didn't really have the time for it then, it's going to be very nice to have a TV now - even if we just watch movies with it) I can't really think of anything else at the moment. Oh, I finished sanding and painting Evan's changing table on Saturday. Once I get his room set up I'll take pictures - I promise.

Also, thank you to everyone who was praying for Scot while he took boards - he got the results from the COMLEX today and he passed - praise the Lord!!!

picasa picasa

I actually uploaded pictures today - there are now pictures of Evan on our picasa link! Have fun!

i'm back!!

Hey all! We finally got the internet up and running this morning and the first order of bussiness was for me to get on and update this here blog! But, that being said, I do have a house to put into order, a son that will need to be fed soon, a husband who will also need to be fed soon after that and myself that will need to be showered and dressed sometime after that so I can be ready for a BBQ we're going to tonight. Oh yes, and I have a chocolate cake and frosting to make for said BBQ. But, while time is on my side, I will give you a quick update in bullet format! Bear with me!

Evan is doing great. He had a growth spurt Tuesday and Wednesday and was that a schedule change! We went from feeding avery 3 to 3.5 hours to ever 90 minutes and sometimes even less. Needless to say, I didn't get much house work done those days. Evan is growing like a weed, though. We think he looks huge, but he must not, because everyone who sees him still comments on how little he is. Also, thanks to my friend Rebecca back in VA and a little tip I like to call "tanking" - Evan is waking only once in the middle of the night!! YAY!! The secret is this: I essentially cluster feed the few hours before he goes to bed at 10, keeping him up between feedings, and then put him down. It's that easy. Ha ha. The last couple night (and the nights before the growth spurt) he wakes up about 2 or 3 and then again at about 6 or 7! It's amazing. I pretty much do nothing but sit and feed him for the last 3 hours of the night, but I'll tell ya what, I would rather that than be up a few times in the middle of the night!! Plus, it's good for me to just sit, or watch a movie or have good conversations with Scot as he unpacks. It's a good system. Thanks, Rebecca!! I'm hoping that in a couple weeks the 10 - 3 window will lengthen and he'll be sleeping through the night by 6-8 weeks - at least that's the hope and the intent of this whole tanking plan. I'll let you all know how it works.

Scot and I are doing well. We're enjoying settling in and being parents. It's an adjustment, but we don't let having Evan hinder us. I've become very proficient with my sling and that makes life so much easier. If we're out and Evan needs to be fed, we stop and I feed him in the car, and like this past week when we were out shopping, he got fed in a parking garage! We've learned to improvise, that's for sure. Or with grocery shopping or cooking or even eating dinner, I just put him in the sling, and we're good!

The townhouse is amazing. Mom has done so much work on it and there really aren't words to describe having my own place and my own stuff. I'll have to upload some pictures onto the picasa page for you all to see sometime today or tomorrow - no promises, though! But it's been fun to cook and entertain already. I can't wait until everything is in order so it really feels like home, but we're getting there. All that's left to pull out now are all the "household accessories" as I like to call them. Candles and pictures and such. The stuff that makes a house a home, right?

Well, I think this is about all I have time for at the moment! I hope everyone is doing well and I'll try this weekend and next week to catch up on everyone's blogs!! Thanks for stopping by and I'll try to get pictures up sometime soon!!

safe and sound

We are praising God that we are safe in Colorado!! We eft early on Tuesady, stopped in Kansas for th night, and did the last keg this morning. Evan did great!! He stayed on his solid 3 hour schedule and slept beautifully for us. We only had a little bit of crying at the very end - but who wouldn't after being in a car seat for so long?

We're relaxing at my folks til the weekend and it will be a much needed break after packing and driving. We'll unpack this weekend, but for now, we're recouping! Evan is doing great - he weighed in at 7.10 on Monday, so he's growing well!! He's still a very laid back baby and we are so grateful to have such a good baby. Well, that's about it for now. I just wanted to get on and let everyone know we made it safe!!

more pictures!!

getting a sun bath!! (it's gotten rid of most of the jaundice!!)


hanging out with daddy - Scot's been such a great help


his favorite sleeping position - no, I don't leave him like this unattended


chillin'


close up - look at those baby blues!!


all bundled up

We're doing well. Recovery is going really well and Evan's only waking up about once in the middle of the night! (YAY) I'm still napping when I can and the apartment is slowly but surely being packed away. We leave on Tuesday, so don't expect to hear from me too often throughout the next week or so. I'll try to get on and update when I can and we plan to install internet as soon as possible once we're there. Hope you enjoyed the pictures...he just gets cuter everyday!

some pictures as promised

I think these are mostly self explanatory, but I'll have a running commentary just in case. :)

At the start of it all


Just a few minutes old


My first time holding him!


3 generations!!


Like gammy like grandson...and like me, too. I guess some things carry through generations.


Leaving the hospital


So little!!


His favorite sleeping position


Full and content


Sitting up with his bunny

quick update

Hey all! We're doing well here. Evan had his first doctor's appointment this morning and it went really well. Not only did I get out of the house on time with him, but he was given a "practically perfect" by the pediatrician. He's turning a little yellow and so "sun baths" are in order for the morning and evenings over the next few days to try and get rid of the jaundice. Otherwise, though, he's doing great. He's a very alert baby when he's awake and very strong. He already lifts his head and turns it to "see" who is talking! He's 7 lbs on the dot, so he's gained back his birth weight and then some - which is good...it means he really is eating well! haha

On the home front, we're also doing well. We're tired of course, but I'm learning to sleep when he does for a couple of his naps and that seems to help. People have come out of the woodwork at church and in the community to lend us a hand and it's amazing to see that. Evan is sleeping well and has already put himself on a solid 2.5 - 3 hour feeding schedule - I'm hoping it lasts. We're still trying to figure out different cries, and for me, that's the hardest part. We have "i'm hungry" and "i'm tired" down, but there are 2 other cries that we can't quite nail down yet. It's all trial and error and I just hope and pray we don't make too many big errors.

The Lord continues to show us how wonderful HE is. The timing on the labor couldn't have been better. Scot was able to turn a test in right before our Tuesday appointment and then we ended up not going home. It really couldn't have been better. My mom and I were able to do everything we needed to do before he came and when she left on Sunday morning I didn't feel short-changed (I would have LOVED to keep her around - don't get me wrong - she was amazing and I couldn't have done it without her! But she needed to get home, too, and tend to things on that end.) There are so many other things HE has done...we really do serve an awesome God.

Ok, now to answer some questions that everyone seems to be asking...haha.
1) yes, I did it med free and it was so worth it and yes, I will do it again as long as I don't have to be induced and no...i wasn't neccesarily planning on going med free
2) I was not induced - just manual dialated...haha...that's a fun one to explain ;)
3) yes, i will get on later and post more pictures. Here are just 2 that someone posted on facebook. I'll try in the next couple of days to get back and post some more, though!
One day old...so cute!!

My little guy a bit on the tired side...

GOD IS good

Hey guys, Scot here (writing what Sarah told me to write :) )! Evan Blake arrived last night at 6:18 p.m. he is 6 lbs. 14 oz. 20.25" long. His head and chest are both 13 cm in circumference. Evan & Sarah are doing great. Sarah will be on later to give the whole story (because being the typical guy, I don't know all the details), but the quick version is this. After the drs. appt on Tuesday, the dr. thought it would be best to "manually" dilate her (Sarah was barely at 1 cm.) and so off to the hospital we went. She dilated to 3 cm. in no time & stayed at a 3 till 10 a.m. when active labor started. Hard labor started at about 4 p.m. and she finally got in bed to labor at about 5:30 p.m. Right before 6 p.m. she was a 9.5 cm and the doc broke her water, and right after 6 she started pushing. 6: 18 p.m. he was born and he is beautiful (These are her words not mine. If you ask me handsome or dashing is more fitting, but I have been told those terms are reserved for men--not baby boys)! He is feeding great and sleeping great. He barely cries and he is very alert when he's awake. Here are some pictures--enjoy!

happy July 1st!!

So my mom and I have this running competition of who can wish the other one a happy 1st, first - and this month...I won. Ha ha. But I didn't really give her a fair chance. As soon as I knew she was awake, I called out "HAPPY JULY FIRST!!" - we both got a good laugh out of it.

Still no baby - obviously - but I think we MAY be getting somewhere...maybe. I've been feeling pretty 'ick' over the last few days (and if you've been pregnant before, I'm just going to assume you know what that means...and if you've never been pregnant, well, I'm sorry, you're just going to have to stay in the dark a little longer) so I'm hoping that's a good sign. Mom tells me that at least it's something, and she's right. We're walking like crazy, though, to encourage him to come out. Almost 10 miles every day since she got here! Not all at once, though, we'll do our 5 mile loop in the morning, about 2 miles in the afternoon, and another 2 or so in the evening. I'm a little sore once we're done with the last one, but I sleep great!

We go see the doctor this afternoon and we'll see what he has to say. I'm hoping something good. I guess my mom went into her doctors appointment with Jared the day he was born not having a clue anything was as close as it was and the doc just said "oh, you're going to have this baby today!" - and she did. AND...she only pushed 1 and a half times....I can only hope and pray to be that fortunate! ha ha Somehow I think not, but hey...one can hope. Otherwise, we're doing well just waiting...I feel great and we're staying busy busy busy to pass the time!