The Fair

We had a great time at the Fair on Saturday. Here are some pics:


Jacob and Andrew sleeping...at the same time!

Weee!!! Riding the "big, big, big slide" with Daddy.
Goats - Jacob loves goats!
Jacob learns to "milk" a cow
A Jacob-sized John Deere.
Waiting for Mommy and Baby Brother
Mmm....a Mexican funnel cake!
Ok, so there aren't many Andrew pics. Just imagine a hot baby sleeping in a baby carrier. Yep, that was his day!

Reasons I love my first son: #153 ...

He does things that make me laugh (like the placement of his Cars sticker), and then goes about his day without another thought of them. Just how long does a sticker last on a sweaty two-year-old's forehead? One hour and counting....

You're amazing, Jacob - I love you!!

Thanks be to God!

We went to the cardiologist yesterday and have great news to report!! On the last EKG, Andrew had consistent "immature" beats (irregular)...like every 8-9 beats. On the EKG yesterday, he only had ONE on the whole strip! While we still need to watch him and go in again in four weeks, we are rejoicing that the Lord has matured Andrew's heart so much and in the cardiologist's own words, this issue should "soon be behind us"! Thank you for your prayers - we are so thankful to see God answer in this wonderful way!

Andrew is getting very big too - he has already gained almost TWO pounds since birth. WOW! Guess I don't have to worry about milk supply! :)

Here are some pics of this week...

We went to DISNEYLAND for a couple of hours one day - this is about the extent of Andrew's excitementAnd this is a pic of Jacob enjoying ringing the bell on the "pirate" ship - that was a first for us!
An interesting Andrew expression - any ideas what he is thinking?
Jacob's "Bob the Builder" hat - you gotta love the $1 bin at Target!
Uncle Brandon came to visit our crazy home...I don't think the active toddler and newborn inspired aspirations of children in his near future!
Last but not least...Jacob discovers Jello.
He hasn't asked to have it again!

An Interview with the Home Run Hitter....




Jacob LOVES baseball. He has been to a few games already this season and asks us frequently if we've bought tickets for any more games. Each time we go to a game, he picks up on something new. The last two times we went he picked up on the fact that pitchers lift a leg when they throw (so Jacob does now too) and that when someone hits a homerun, they throw their bat, trot around the bases, and there are fireworks and lots of clapping. So, we have many homeruns at our home now - all accompanied by a tossed bat and lots of fireworks and clapping. If we forget the clapping or fireworks, we are always reminded. :)

God is SO GOOD!

What a difference a week makes! I am so thankful to report that my fever and chills turned out to be....the flu! While it did hang on for quite awhile, I am so thankful that the only results of my "fever and chills" episode was a week of no appetite and that "I have the flu and don't feel good!" feeling. I am feeling MUCH better and so happy to not have an infection...but also confident that if I had one, God would have provided the grace we would have needed. This has been a great week of trusting in the Lord and having my husband lead me in rejoicing in Him amidst tiredness, sickness, and the EASY JOYS too - like two sons and a husband who I adore, getting 4.5 hours of consecutive sleep last night, and getting to be with the church body this morning! :)

The grandmas are requesting new Andrew pics, and I am ashamed to admit that we had to get out the camera to take them...a little different than the baby-ratzi that Jacob had to endure.

Here is a great pic of Andrew's "I'm really mad right now" face...

And a sleepy head shot. They're so cute when they sleep!

Wow - what a week!

We're home from the hospital and after a couple of unexpected trips to the doctor for mom and baby, things seem to be mellowing out around our home.

Andrew update and explanation: Andrew has an irregular heart beat that caused some concern in the hospital. After running a couple of EKGs and an Echo Cardiogram along with some blood tests, the pediatric cardiologist believes that there is no structural reason for the irregularity and therefore the problem will probably resolve itself. Apparently while it isn't a common condition, it isn't too strange for newborns to have a "transitional" heart beat that usually resolves itself within the first days of life. For Andrew, this is what it seems to be, though his is taking longer to resolve. We have another EKG and apt with the cardiologist scheduled for three weeks from now - we appreciate your continued prayers for Andrew and his heart. And we thank the Lord for the good news about the structures of his heart being good!

Mommy update: This C-Section was MUCH easier and has been a lot easier to recover from. I am thankful to have had such wonderful help - first with my Mom and Alan, and then with Matt's mom...they all were amazing with Jacob and helping us to transition to life with 2 kids. I am loving having a snuggly baby and an active, funny toddler - they are such a great combination! As for doctor's visits, fever and the chills set in for me on the 4th of July...not a good combo for a recovering surgery patient. So we spent most of the day trying to get rid of the fever while making calls into the doctor to see what we needed to do. By evening, we were told I had to go into the ER (no open dr offices on holidays!) and have it checked out, since the usual suspects were not causing the fever and chills and because they had lasted all day. After a very sobering visit to the ER (which is completely blog-worthy in and of itself...so I will wait to give the details), and so as to not make Andrew feel all alone, I got my own set of blood tests, x-rays, and even a CT scan to try to find the source of the infection. After all of that, no source was found! I was discharged and told to watch it and wait and return to the OB on Monday morning. By 3am, my fever had completely broke, and I haven't had a fever at all today. So, we're hoping and praying it was just a transient fever or a little bit of dehydration!

After all of that, what you're really here for....
Grandma Chris with her grandsons. THANK YOU for such a wonderful visit, Grammy!

Andrew - the serious expression.

Couldn't help but post this shot - gotta love that face!