Happy (late) Birthday Gabe!!

Gabe's birthday was last week, on the 21st. We planned to go out to eat the day of his birthday but he had the opportunity to go dove hunting instead, so we opted for a lunch picnic with him instead. The kids always enjoy visiting their Papa at work and Gabe enjoyed showing off Caleb to all his co-workers. Last Friday we did manage to get out to eat.... at the Gristmill in New Braunfels. Just can't go wrong when eating at the Gristmill. Isaac and Julia went "shopping" for Gabe in their own rooms. (something they enjoy doing) They wrapped up all kinds of toys and random things to give to Gabe as gifts. It was fun to see what they thought would make a great gift. Like the painted rock Isaac gave Gabe because it was his "moon rock" and Julia gave him some of her legos because Gabe had given all his legos to Isaac. Sweet and thoughtful. They adore and love their Papa so much.Happy (late) Birthday Gabe!!

Isaac and Julia made cupcakes for their Papa.

Picnic lunch at Gabe's office

Just being silly!

Caleb sleeping through the festivities!!

Have I mentioned.....

I LOVE the Jesus Storybook Bible?!!! My absolute favorite children's story Bible! In fact, I personally think all adults, young and old, should read it as well. There are some stories that will absolutely touch your soul and bring tears to your eyes. Beautifully written.

So this is my plug for JSB. On October 6th they are releasing their deluxe version which includes the stories on CD. If your kids are like mine (especially my 5 year old) then the audio portion will be a hit. So check out their website below. I guarantee you and your kids will love this Bible.

Not much to say.... just some pics to share

This is a hodge podge post. I am sitting here waiting for Isaac to finish his math (taking way longer than it should!) Anyway, thought I would post a few pics while I waited.

Isaac decided to "fix" Julia's hair the other day.

This is Isaac and Julia's new game. He has a jump rope around the swing. Apparently, pulling the rope is way more fun than just regular pushing. You should hear the giggles that result from this game!

Isaac absolutely adores his baby brother. He looks forward to teaching him how to wrestle and despise all things princess.

Just like big brother. Isaac used to make this same exact face when he was an infant. Cute, huh?!

No more pictures PLEASE!

Asleep in Mommy's arms

Sportin' the cap Grammy made for him

Yes, he does cry sometimes. Not often.... but it does happen!

Sweet Little Caleb

Treasure Hunter

I think every child goes through the stage of Treasure Hunting, or at least mine do. Isaac has always loved to collect any and everything...... rocks, sticks, feathers, strings, you name it! Julia is now in that stage and loves to bring home a collection of rocks. The other day after returning from a playground, her pockets were full of rocks. She decided they needed some spicing up and got busy painting them. Because what is better than plain ol' rocks?.... well, pink and purple rocks of course!!!

The Whole Story

I doubt many people want to read the details of my labor/delivery, but I want to write it somewhere and this is the most convenient place to do that right now. So here is the whole story.....

Wednesday night, the 2nd, I woke up having some pretty intense Braxton Hicks contractions. Painful enough to wake me up. I have had BH contractions all throughout this pregnancy and they have always been much more painful than with the other pregnancies. So I didn't think much of it at the time. The next morning I woke up and just felt different. The contractions continued so I called my doc. After scrambling for a bit, I finally found someone to watch Isaac and Julia while I went to see Dr. V.(thanks Shana!!) I didn't know at this time if I would be going straight to the hospital or back home again. So I called my sister and had her go ahead and head our way. (she was going to be here that afternoon anyway) Then Gabe and I headed to the doctor to find out that yes indeed my labor had begun, still in the early stages though. My doc offered to send us immediately over the hospital to have my waters broke and possibly start Pitcon. Gabe and I decided to wait it out and let things happen more naturally.

I had several desires for the birth of our son. One being that I wanted the labor to start on its own without medical intervention. We were scheduled for an induction on the 4th if that didn't happen. My other desire was for Caleb to be born on the 4th - a special day for Gabe and I. God honored both desires and we feel so completely blessed by that.

So, back to the story. Gabe and I headed back home. Gabe even went back to work for the rest of the day. My sister arrived - who by the way is an RN and has worked labor/delivery. She helped me throughout the day as the contractions grew stronger and closer together. It was so nice to be at home, chatting and laughing with my sis in between contractions, and enjoying being around my children. Much better than laboring all that time in the hospital hooked up to a million monitors and machines.


By early evening I was getting increasingly uncomfortable. I camped out on the couch and labored on. This was our last picture of the four of us, when I was still in a smiling mood. After the kids went to bed at 8, my contractions got much more intense. Between 8 and 10 I was in serious pain. By 10 the contractions were 3-4 min. apart and we headed to the hospital. For the next two hours, I begged and pleaded for an epidural. By the time I got one (12:30 am), the contractions were every 1 1/2 to 2 min apart and VERY INTENSE!!! It was hard to sit still long enough to get the needle in. I was shaking, crying, and surely gripping Gabe's arms hard enough to leave marks. At one point the doctor said to me.... "So I see your not a fan of needles." I replied, "No, I am not a fan of PAIN!" (thinking in my head... if you don't get that darn needle in my back soon and get that medicine pumping I am going to crawl over this bed and strangle you - funny how childbirth brings out a completely different side of me!!)

This is me after getting the epidural !! Notice the smile!! I have spared you the before pictures ;)

A few minutes later and .... pure bliss!!! The epidural was doing its job and the anesthesiologist was my new best friend. I take back all the nasty thoughts from before. If I could have gotten out of the bed, I would have kissed his feet for ending my pain. :) It took until 2 am for the docs and nurses to do all their monitoring and such before they finally left the room. Gabe and I got some zzz's off and on for the next four hours. I actually slept soundly between nurse checks.

At 6:00 am the nurse said my doctor was there for another delivery and wanted to stop by and check me. When he checked I was fully ready to have this baby. He broke my waters and had me push one time. That was enough for him to see that Caleb was finally ready to be born!!! Three contractions later and our 9 pound 4 ounce baby boy was born on 9-4-09 at 6:32 a.m. The room collectively gasped at his size when he was born . No one, not even my doctor, expected Caleb to be so big. Isaac and Julia were both right at 8 pounds. One nurse commented, "wow, you just gave birth to a watermelon!" Gabe and I just laughed and thought that painting my belly like a watermelon was quite fitting!! :)


Knowing this was most likely my last pregnancy and labor/delivery, I feel so blessed that everything went so smoothly and just how I desired it to go. I can now look back and have no regrets.

God has blessed Gabe and I with three healthy, happy, and wonderful children. It is a privilege to be Isaac, Julia, and Caleb's Mommy!

100 Easy Lessons

Last September, I started on a quest with Isaac to teach him to read. He had the basics down, but it was time to step it up a notch. I got this book, Teach your child to read in 100 easy lessons. It is written for parents to do with their children and the lessons only take about 20-30 minutes a day. To be honest, I was a bit skeptical at first because the lessons seemed tedious, but that fact and the repetitive nature really works for Isaac. Little by little he built upon his reading skills and finally after a year of trying to complete that book (obviously it took longer than 100 days for us to finish this book), Isaac completed lesson 100 last week. It hasn't always been easy... he struggled through some of the lessons, but that is how he deals with learning something (anything) new. After all his hard work, he is now a really great reader. The book said that when the child completes the book, then he/she will be reading at a second grade level. I am not sure Isaac is quite that.... but who knows, maybe he is. What matters is that he is reading and we are all proud of his hard work.

Two Weeks

Caleb is two weeks old today. I took him in for his check up this morning and was shocked to find out that he has gained 14 ounces in the last 10 days. He now weighs 9 pounds and 9 ounces!! He has also grown an inch since birth. Woo Hoo - he is my "little" chunky monkey!!!

Caleb is still a very easy and content baby. He has been sleeping really well at night and I only have to get up with him once. That is huge to me considering the trials I went through in the past when Julia was an infant. He also does really well with soothing himself and falls asleep for naps on his own. He does this better when snuggly and swaddled - thank goodness for the Miracle Blanket!!! That swaddle blanket really came in handy with Julia as well. (thank you Angela for giving that to us as a gift when Julia was born.... I bet you had no idea how useful it really has been!!)

We have been able to get back to more of a normalcy around here. Amazing how normal things do feel after only two weeks. The adjustments of having Caleb join our family have been very easy. The kids act as if he has always been apart of our family. And he has. God intended him for us all along. He has completed our family and we are so incredibly blessed to have three healthy, beautiful, and happy children. All praise to our Creator!

I know it is a bit too early for a genuine smile, but this is as close as we can get right now. He has such a sweet face!

Playtime in his crib

Grammy and Grandaddy

My parents came for a short visit last Saturday. This was their first time to meet their newest grandson. It was a good visit. Just wish they could have stayed longer. Isaac and Julia really enjoyed playing with Grammy and Grandad and were both sad to see them go.

Caleb's First Bath

Last Tuesday, we all (and I mean ALL - everyone was involved in one way or another) gave Caleb his first bath at home. This is the one thing that Julia was looking forward to the most when I was pregnant with Caleb. And she was such a fantastic helper. She helped gather all the items needed then she and Isaac helped clean him. Caleb did really well, only fussed when he was uncovered and cold. He didn't even fuss when I was washing his hair. Afterward, he laid contentedly on the towel. So far he is pretty laid back. We are all praying that continues!! :)

Look at those curls!

Snuggly and warm after his bath!

Precious

Absolutely Precious!

Labor Day

When it rains, it pours! And I am not talking about the real wet stuff we have been getting lately. I am talking about the fact that just days before Caleb was born our dish washer broke and days after he was born our plumbing had some major issues. That left me in tears (you know I am hormonal and all ;) and Gabe with a load of labor on Labor Day. He worked his tail off and by the end of the day our plumbing was working again and we had a new dishwasher. Gabe totally ROCKS!!! He takes such good care of our family! After all his hard work, we ended our day with hot dogs, beer brats, and jalapeno poppers. Any day is a good day when it includes grilling - that's what Gabe would say!!

Gabe hard at work

Isaac was a great helper with all the repairs

My kitchen was in disarray most of the day

Gabe and Karen stuffing the jalapenos

Playing in the Rain

After a summer of drought it is so wonderful to see the rain coming down. Not just sprinkles either.... real rain, all day long rain, inches of rain at a time!!! Woo Hoo!! Yesterday, Isaac found the rain coat and headed out to play in the rain. Julia, not wanting to be left out, grabbed some rain boots and an umbrella and followed big brother outside. They had a blast and came back in soaking wet. So much for the "rain gear"!

One Week

Caleb is one week old today. Isn't he a handsome lil' fella?!

First Night of AWANA

Wednesday was the first night of AWANA for this year. Julia is in Cubbies and Isaac is in Sparks. They have both been looking forward to this year of AWANA all summer long and were so excited last night when they left. When they got home Julia was beaming and Isaac was scouring.

Isaac doesn't do well with change and I guess his first night of Sparks didn't quite live up to his expectations. He came home absolutely upset saying that he didn't have any fun, he didn't like Sparks and he wanted to quit. Wow! Not quite the reaction I was expecting from him. I am not sure what went on in his classroom, but it is going to take some convincing to get him to go back and give it another try next week. Broke my heart to see him so upset.

Julia, on the other hand, LOVED Cubbies. Gabe is a Cubbie leader so he could fill me in on how she did. He said she was clingy at first but warmed up and had a blast. She was all smiles when they got home and she excitedly told me all the wonderful and fun things they did.

Hope next week goes better for Isaac. I will be praying for Isaac between now and then that God will soften his heart and help him see the blessings in his experiences.

Update

We have been so completely blessed to have my sister here for the past week. She got here last Thursday when my labor began. She is an RN and has worked labor/delivery in the past, so she was such a huge help and encouragement as I labored for 12 hours at home. She lovingly took great care of Isaac and Julia while we were in the hospital and in the days that followed. With her here I was able to get a 2 hour nap in every day. HUGE blessing! Other than all that, I adore Karen for so many reasons I couldn't list them all here. As I have said before, she is my best friend (outside of Gabe, of course). She is always there for me. So with all that said, you can only imagine why I am so sad this morning as she left to go back home. I miss her already. Thank you Karen for just being you. I love you dearly and miss you much!!

Things have been going really well around here. So far Caleb is a pretty content little guy. I hope he stays that way. He is doing well on a sleep/eat/wake cycle. We went to the doctor yesterday for his first weight check and he is now 8lbs 11oz. Even with the weight loss he is still bigger than most babies at birth. He is such a sweet, precious and perfect baby! I thank God everyday for three wonderful and healthy children. They are all my sweet little blessings!!!

Isaac and Julia are doing great as well. They are getting a little stir crazy having to stay home so much right now. Trying to find some fun things to do around the house to keep them busy. We are on a school break for a couple of weeks but I think once we get back into our normal schedule they will do better. Just can't even think about school right now - too many other things going on.

Isaac asked me yesterday why Caleb didn't cry more than he does. I wonder if he is having flashbacks to the days of Julia screaming as an infant and wondering why Caleb isn't doing the same thing! Of course, Julia didn't start screaming until she was right at a month old. So we will see what personality emerges from our little guy in the coming weeks.

Well, better get off the computer and get some laundry done. Boo! But I will leave you with some pictures.

Sunday morning at breakfast Gabe held Caleb and read Psalm 139 to the family. Sweet memory!

Sweet Big Sister Julia

Can you see the absolute glee in Isaac's face? He adores Caleb and is a wonderful Big Brother!

Me and my boys!!

Doesn't get much better than this

Super Baby...to the Rescue!!

It is as if he has always been apart of my heart and this family. Can't imagine life without Caleb.

Checking out baby brother

Siblings - it is still sinking in that I have 3 children

The loves of my life

Julia is a great lil' helper

4 days old

Sweet Caleb Andrew

A few seconds to spare...

Gabe and Isaac are busy installing our new dish washer (old one broke a few days before Caleb was born). Julia is hanging out with Aunt Karen and Caleb is snoozing in his crib. So I have a few seconds to spare and thought I would post a few new pics.

These pictures were taken right before we left the hospital. Isaac and Julia wore their "Big Brother" and "Big Sister" shirts and Caleb wore this "Little Brother" onesie. Cute, huh?!

My 3 children!!!

Julia is fascinated with Caleb

Ready to go home. Isaac and Julia didn't fill up this car seat quite like Caleb does. He is my big boy!!

Aunt Karen and Caleb

Our family of 5!!! Welcome Home Caleb!!!

I am off to wake up Caleb so I can feed him. Then I plan to sneak off for a nap. :)

Few Pictures & Short Update

I obviously don't have a lot of time to post right now, but I thought I would add a few pictures of our little Caleb. We got home from the hospital yesterday afternoon and we are all doing great. Isaac and Julia absolutely adore Caleb. Julia has a hard time saying Caleb sometimes and calls him "Calov". I am sure she has heard K-LOVE often enough on the radio to get it confused!! Isaac loves to hold Caleb and told me today that he could hold him all day if I would let him. Julia on the other hand has a shorter attention span and lasts about 2 minutes. But they are both adjusting nicely to the changes and the addition to our family. I will try to post more another day, but for now I will leave you with some pictures.

Isaac and Julia's first introduction to Caleb

Me and my sweet little boy

All bundled up - my Mom made this blanket and hat for Caleb

Papa and Caleb

More to come so keep checking back!!

Meet Caleb!

Caleb has arrived and we know everyone wants pictures, so here we go ...
A pic and a slideshow:

Our Little Guy

More...

He's Here!!!!!

We are so very happy to announce that our precious baby boy has arrived.......

Caleb Andrew Landes
Born at 6:32am on September 4th
9 lbs 4oz 20in

More details and pictures to come!!!

Still at Home

I am still at home, been laboring all day. The contractions are now 5-10 min apart. As crazy as it sounds we are hoping to hold out until after 12pm - nuts aren't we?! Really wanting Sept.4 to be his birthday. Seeing that it is after 8pm, I think midnight is within our reach!! We will see how things go. May be going in during the middle of the night or early tomorrow morning. Please keep praying for the safe delivery of our baby boy!

Update

So the contractions that started last night have not eased up today. I won't give you all the gory details but I am definitely in early labor. I went to my doc to get checked this morning. I am 3 cm dilated, 75% effaced and my contractions are every 10-15 minutes apart. My doctor offered to send me over to the hospital to break my water and help the labor along or just wait it out. Gabe and I opted to wait it out and let nature do it's job as much as possible. So I am home now, laboring as long as I can here. My sister is here. So if I have to go back to the hospital earlier than tomorrow morning, then the kids are taken care of.

Tomorrow is the BIG Day!!

Our baby boy had no intentions of arriving early, so tomorrow is the BIG day! Gabe and I will be up and out of here very early to arrive at the hospital at 5:30 am. Of course, I probably won't start labor until 8 am or so. My sister will be here tonight to stay with us for a few days. What a blessing to have Karen here to take care of the kids and then help out once we are home from the hospital. Outside of Gabe, she is my best friend. I love her dearly and feel at ease knowing she will be here for us.

I was up most of last night with pretty painful Braxton Hicks contractions. Painful enough to wake me up from sleep but not consistent enough to be real labor. Lots of lower back pain as well. I think the kids and I will stay close to home and take it easy today.Thinking piles of pillows and blankets, pjs, and movies are in order for today. I am excited, nervous, elated, and so much more all at once. My mind is racing with what tomorrow will bring. Nothing compares to the first time you see and hold your newborn child. If I am able to get to sleep at all tonight, I am sure I will dream of my sweet baby boy. My arms are waiting for him!

Countdown

Isaac took this picture of me on Sunday. Yes, you read that right. I let my 5 year old hold and use my very expensive digital camera! It's all about trust! He did pretty well, and at least my head is not cut off. May be a bit blurry, but even I take blurry pictures. He was pretty proud of himself!!

So we are down to 2 days (not counting today). We go in early, early, early Friday morning. Thankfully I have been sleeping ok so far this week with the exception of last night.My mind is starting to get all tangled up with the details of the birth and such. If I could get my mind to be at ease, then I am pretty sure I would be able to rest better. Really want to go into labor/delivery and newborn stage well rested. So if you are praying for just that, thank you and keep praying!!

Isaac seems very ready not only to meet his new brother but to have his old Momma back. He keeps jabbing me with comments like...."Papa is more fun than you because he sits on my floor and plays with me" ..."Why do pregnant Momma's always complain?" ...."When will you wrestle and tickle me again?" At first I thought his comments were a bit rude and uncalled for, but then I realized it was his way of communicating how ready he is for things to go back to "normal". Little does he know, things will forever be changed again in our family with the addition of a new sibling. But Mommy will be able to run, wrestle, and sit on the floor to build Legos again- that's all he really wants from me right now. And I look forward to being able to oblige.