Making my life easier...

My friend Elisa made me this awesome baby wrap a few days ago. I LOVE IT!!! I would definitely recommend it to anyone with babies (you can even carry a toddler or preschooler safely). It is so comfortable and fits very snugly. There are tons of different ways to wrap your child - in the front (like I'm doing in the picture), on your back, on your hip - you can nurse, clean, cook, whatever! Before I had this there were so many times that I had to listen to Aubree scream while I did something else that required two hands... not anymore!

Thanks to our door chain I am able to take a nap while the baby sleeps and Carly and Ellie watch a movie. I don't have to worry about them going out or letting someone else in. I usually have about twenty minutes before Ellie is bored or before the Carly and Ellie drama starts.

And last, but not least... Aaron, aka entertainer (for Carly and Ellie), sounding board (for me...and the girls), maid, cook, and basically anything that needs to be done.

Just had to add this picture - what a doll!
p.s. I finally added a playlist. The "Aubrey" song by Bread is on it.

I love newborns

A baby will make love stronger,

days shorter,

nights longer,

bankroll smaller,

home happier,

clothes shabbier,

the past forgotten,

and the future worth living for.

-- Anonymous

• I love the funny faces they make when they sleep


• I love the way they smell


• I love the noises they make (except when it's in the middle of the night and it keeps you awake wondering if they're going to start crying any second)


• I love the baby-fine hair (a mullet in Aubree's case)


• I love their smiles (not purposely at me - I think Aubree sees angels and is smiling at them). But, it is the best thing in the world when they finally smile at you on purpose


• I love how they curl up in the fetal position and mold to you when you're holding them


• I love how they start rooting around trying to get their mouth on anything, in hopes of finding something for their belly.


• And I love the sound they make when they finally get their fist in their mouth and start sucking - so cute.


• I LOVE how Aubree just stares at me so peacefully like she knows me and like she's trying to memorize my face and my voice. She has a lot of quiet-awake moments where she just observes things around her (she's not very fussy...so far).

I have thoroughly been enjoying having this new little baby in our home! Although I am feeling quite sleep deprived! I am definitely not used to sleepless nights...for the most part. When Carly and Ellie do wake up in the night it is usually very easy to get them back to sleep (not to mention that Aaron has been the one waking up with Carly and Ellie ever since I got pregnant with Aubree). Anyway, I'm really enjoying Aubree and wondering why life wasn't a breeze when I just had Carly as a newborn. I had the baby blues pretty bad with her and some major anxiety issues and I just felt so overwhelmed and like I couldn't keep up with everything. Now, that I've done this three times I just wish I would have enjoyed the newborn stage with Carly more. (I didn't love her any less, I was just sooooo stressed out. all. the. time.) But Aaron says that I can enjoy Carly now. But man, I just wish life would slow down a bit! (Do you ever feel like you don't have time to enjoy life because there's too much to get done?) I'm sure things will start to slow down a bit once we get into a routine with three kids. I really do feel so grateful to have three beautiful and healthy girls!


p.s. Yesterday I found a couple pictures of Carly when she was about a month old. I think that her and Aubree look a lot alike. I don't have digital copies of them, so I'll try to scan some in and post them. And I'll try to find some newborn pics of Ellie too - we seem to have lost all of her newborn pictures though. :(

Aubree Lynette

Born Thursday, February 5th 2009
7 pounds, 18 ½ inches

I went to the hospital Thursday morning to be induced. I was on pitocin for 3 ½ hours which did NOTHING as far as progressing me, but put me in a whole lot of pain. I then got an epidural (my first – totally AWESOME) and they broke my water. Three hours later the doc arrived at the hospital – I had one contraction (pushed twice – UNBELIEVABLE) and our little baby was born!

This was such an awesome labor and delivery for me, mostly due to the fact that I had an epidural and the baby was not posterior. With Carly and Ellie I went into labor naturally and was on pitocin with both (without an epidural). I labored for about 6 ½ hours and pushed for about 1 ½ hours with both of them (they were both posterior). So, this was seriously amazing for me!

We had the hardest time naming her and didn't officially decide until we got home today. Aaron and I really like the name Aubree mainly from the song by Bread (hopefully I'll figure out how to put that song on my blog), and of course we just think it is a pretty name. (We also think that Bree is a cute nickname.) Her middle name, Lynette, is my Mom's name.

So far, both baby and I are doing really well and we were able to come home today. Aubree sleeps a lot and is a good little eater (she would nurse constantly if I let her I think). We are so grateful for how well the delivery went and that we had a healthy little girl to bring home.

Mommy's thinking: "Yes!"

Baby's thinking: "Oh Man! Did I take a wrong turn somewhere?!"

Nanny Nette and Grandpa Johnson with Aubree

Her little newborn outfit just drowns her! It's amazing how tiny they are!

Carly can hardly get enough of her

This is a video of Ellie holding her for the first time.

Doctor appointment, Sicknesses, and Birthday...

I had another Dr. appointment today. When she checked me she said I was almost dilated to a three - last week she said I was at a three...hmmm. It's always a little disappointing to go to an appointment in your last weeks and find that you haven't progressed (or even regressed - if that's possible), but I'm grateful that this little bun is still in the oven. About four nights ago Ellie was sick and threw up four times (poor thing), so I was glad that the baby didn't come that night or the next day. Then, the night after that Carly had a really bad asthma attack. She has had a cold and a cough for the last few days and in the middle of the night she started coughing and called out for her daddy. I laid in bed hoping that she would just fall back to sleep without either of us having to get out of bed. But then she kind of cried/whimpered again, so I went in there. I am so glad I did because she was barely breathing and probably wouldn't have been able to call out to us again. So scary!!! So, she slept with me that night and I spent the rest of the night listening to her breathing (and occasionally gasping). Luckily we had her inhaler on hand (which we haven't had to use in almost a year - I was really hoping we were over this asthma stuff). So, I'm also glad the baby didn't come that night or the next day either. Well, the girls are still sick (and Aaron's getting it too), so I'm hoping that we have enough time to get everyone well again for when the baby does come.


My birthday was last week and my parents had this t-shirt blanket made for me. These are a bunch of t-shirts from girls' choice dances, student government, family vacations, softball, dance team, cheer leading, etc. It was so fun to look at each t-shirt and recall the memories.


During my birthday dinner Aaron asked the girls what they loved about Mommy. I thought their answers were pretty creative:

Carly: “Play blocks with me” (I don’t even know the last time we got the blocks down.)
“Feed my fish with her” (um….what fish?)
“Cuddle with her” (now that’s true!)
Ellie: “When I get her baptized”
“When she writes with me”




We're still planning on making our blog an invite-only in the near future (obviously didn't happen this past week like I thought). I was excited to see how many people have commented and I'm glad we'll be able to keep in touch. So, leave your e-mail address if you haven't already. Thanks!

Going Private

Hey everyone! We're going private with our blog, so please leave your e-mail address and we'll invite you! This will happen in the next week or so (unless the baby comes...then it will happen when I have a spare moment...) I seriously love being able to keep in touch with people through blogging, so I hope we get your e-mail address - yes, I'm talking to YOU. :)

Fridge Quotes VI

December 4, 2008
Ellie was eating Cheez-its and dipping them in water. She said, “I’m baptizing my cracker.”


December 26, 2008
Aaron was reading a book to Carly and Ellie and about half way through they both lost interest, but Aaron kept reading aloud. While he was still reading Carly said, “Um Daddy? Did you notice that nobody is listening to the book?”


January 23, 2009
Daddy: “Girls, what is something you love about Mommy?”
Carly: “Play blocks with me” (I don’t even know the last time we got the blocks down.)
“Feed my fish with her” (um….what fish?)
“Cuddle with her” (now that’s true!)
Ellie: “When I get her baptized”
“When she writes with me”


January 2009
Carly and Ellie have been really concerned lately with who is bigger than who.
This is Carly’s phrase: “Okay, so let me get this straight; I’m bigger than Ellie, Ellie’s bigger than the baby, and Heavenly Father is bigger than all of us.”

We celebrated Ellie's 3rd birthday yesterday and the first thing she asked me this morning was "Mommy, am I still three?" What a little sweetheart! She just makes me laugh so much. I wish I could put up a video of her to show her personality - I can't describe how cute and funny it is. She is just the type of girl you want to squeeze! :) Some of Ellie's favorites:

-Brushing Mommy's hair - this has been her passion for the past several months (she LOVES to do this and will spend lots of time at it - she totally gets into it too)

-Eating sweets

-Being independent

-Doing puzzles (and she's really quite good)

-Singing, dancing, reading, coloring, playdough, workbooks

-She just loves to do whatever Carly is doing and to be wherever Carly is

------------------------------------------------------------------------

I had a doctor's appt. today and I'm 3 cm dilated and 50% effaced - Yipee!!! I was definitely not expecting to have progressed so much because I have had such a nice 9th month so far - not too much pressure and my Braxton-Hicks haven't been too frequent or too strong (I'm comparing this to my 9th month with Ellie...which was NOT fun! Very uncomfortable.) People keep saying "Oh, I bet you are SO ready to be done with this pregnancy" or "you look so uncomfortable"... but really I've been feeling pretty good, so I think I can wait a little while. (I know that the baby is a whole lot easier to take care of right now than she will be after she's born - baby's are so much work! But SO worth it!) On the other hand, I do want the pregnancy to be over soon just so I can meet this little baby and hold her and nurse her and dress her and listen to her breath and smell her... and all that good stuff! Oh, I just can't wait to have another little sweetheart!

So, I'll keep you posted....

37 weeks