mason the troubleshooter

mason is adjusting nicely (so far) to being a big brother. he is very cognizant of madison's activities and does his best to help out where he can. in addition to fetching diapers, bottles and the occasional pacifier (which little bit is not a fan of - apparently if something goes in her mouth, it better have food attached!), mason provides expert troubleshooting services any time madison cries.

the cutest part of it is that he starts every phrase with the word "maybe." as in, "i don't want to come across as a know-it-all, so i'll preface everything with maybe"... kind of like how a spoon full of sugar makes the medicine go down...

for example:

• maybe she's still hungry.
• maybe she wants me to hold her.
• maybe she wants you, mommy.
• maybe she needs a new diaper.
• maybe she's just grumpy!

love that boy!

week 2

hindsight is 20/20. after a surprisingly smooth week 1, i can now say with confidence that it was due to adrenaline. week 2 can be characterized by exhaustion.

while our baby girl is still very sweet, she is a hungry hippo (or hungry caterpillar if you ask mason) and eats every 2.5 to 3 hours all.day.and.night.long.

this is not unusual behavior for a newborn, but these old parents have had 37 straight months of uninterrupted sleep at night. in a nutshell, we're spoiled. and struggling to adjust to the new normal. in the 7 weeks that mason woke up during the night, we only had one child so we could catch some extra zzz's while he napped. now, with a very well-rested 3 year old, we find ourselves dragging through the day, praying that the stars align at 1 pm and both kids sleep at the same time so we can nap too.

this is not to complain, but only to acknowledge that things are different with two kids!

i have not taken many pictures this week, but will do my best to post some before the week ends. until then, i'm counting the minutes to bedtime ;)

santa baby

we visited santa! and in a miracle on market street, we were the only ones there when we went, which meant no line and, even better, limited germs!

no fear here - for either kid. check out our santa visits from years past for a laugh...

2008, 2009, 2010

beautiful

the only thing more beautiful than these...

is this...

grandparent love

pappy loves little bit too, i just haven't managed to take a photo of him snuggling with madison yet!

homeward bound

madison and i both had good nights thursday night so when we were discharged friday, we were feeling pretty good.

based on our previous finding that our girl loves to be held, we weren't sure how the whole carseat thing would suit her. lucky for us, she loves it. we made several stops on the way home to return a movie, fill prescriptions, and pick up lunch, and little bit slept the whole way, content as could be in her seat.

mason was sleeping when we arrived home around 1:30 pm, so we were able to unpack the car and settle in before he woke up. he was SO excited that we were home! his first words to me were, "mommy, do you feel well?" he's been very concerned about how i've been feeling and kept asking me to come home every time he visited the hospital. such a sweet boy.

our first day home was low key. we hung out with granny and papa, watched movies, and ate tacos before turning into bed, crossing our fingers that night one at home would be equally low key.

our little girl is a dream come true! unlike round one of parenthood for us where mason screamed for 4 hours on his first night home, little bit slept like a rock and just woke up at 1 am and 4 am to eat, before going right back to sleep.

it's good to be home and it fills my heart to see our family of four snuggling together.

snuggle bug

after a rough (and very painful) night, day 3 was much better. we enjoyed more snuggles and madison continued to eat like a champ. so far we've learned that she has a few distinct cries:

1. the hold me whimper. a light shriek when she wants to be held (which as we mentioned is basically all the time). as long as we never put her down, we don't hear this one!
2. the dirty diaper cry. quite dramatic and conveys "there is poison in my diaper - act fast!"
3. the i'm starving cry. usually follows the diaper change. clean diaper + empty tummy = need. food. now.

again, it's difficult to take photos when you're always holding the baby, but i grabbed a few while granny was snuggling with her. check out all that hair! i knew there was a reason behind all that pregnancy heartburn!

day 2

we have a snuggler!

unlike her big brother, madison loves to snuggle and be held. translation: home girl cries when you put her down! this in turn makes it difficult to take and post photos as well as type.

we did manage to take a couple of photos yesterday for your viewing pleasure. all in all, the day was a lazy one, spent holding our girl for hours and hours basking in her new-ness and God's goodness. we are blessed indeed.

she's here!

madison grace reece arrived at 1:19 pm weighing in at exactly 8 pounds and measuring 20.5 inches. by the previously established mason standard, she's a lightweight!

she is adorable and day one has been peaceful and full of snuggles and love for our little bit. here are a few photos from the day...

arriving for the big day!

and brrr.... it was 37 degrees!

freshly hatched...

daddy-daughter gaze of love

mason missed mommy today!

meeting his little sister

mason LOVED the present that madison bought him!

little angel...

more to come later... must rest now. ;)

counted too soon

so apparently i counted our blessings too soon! number 3 on our reasons to be thankful was our health. i was a bit disappointed when mason and i both came down with fever, coughs & congestion on tuesday night. no fun!

because it's my last week of work before maternity leave, i've been sitting with my glass of water and box of tissues on the couch working from home while trying to keep the toddler in the room from tearing the house apart. thankfully i had already whittled down my to-do list last week, so i'm just tying up some loose ends (or maybe i just have a better perspective on what's still possible and passed off the rest... my team could better attest to that).

i knew mason must be sick when he asked me to take his picture today - 3 times. if you know mason, you know this isn't normal behavior. i obliged and actually ended up with 3 shots of him smiling while looking at the camera. if only he didn't have to be feeling bad and drugged up to act this way... ;)

prayers for a well family (and me!) before my surgery tuesday are much appreciated. we don't want madison coming home to a sick house!