It's A Cooper!!!

 



 




 



 



 

I am almost 2 weeks late in doing this post but life has been a little hectic lately.  Cooper finally arrived on Friday, September 7th at 11:16 p.m.  He weighed 6 pounds 15 ounces and was 19 inches long.  The delivery was perfect and he is perfect!  If his delivery is any indication of what kind of a baby he will be, we are very lucky.  So far he's living up to it too. 

I was checked earlier in the day by Dr. S and after telling me I was at a 5 and 80%, he said he'd be surprised if I made it through the weekend.  I didn't believe him because with Sawyer I had stayed at a 5 for almost 2 weeks. He said that if I was having regular contractions (no matter how close together), that were hard for 2 hours, I should go in to Labor and Delivery.  I worked a full day that day, having random, light contractions and then picked up Sawyer and went home.  While we were eating dinner I realized the contractions were about 7 minutes apart but that would change when I'd stand up and walk around... then they'd get to be around 4 minutes.  They quickly started to get harder and harder and after about an hour and a half I started to worry that my water would break at home and we wouldn't make it to the hospital on time so my sis came out to watch Sawyer and Skeet and I headed into town.  They hooked me up to the monitors and checked me at 10 p.m. and I was already at a 7.  I insisted that I get an epidural right away and with each contraction, I worried I wouldn't get it in time.  They finally called Dr. S and he said that once I was comfortable, he'd come in and break my water.  Within minutes of getting the epidural I felt it working.  They checked me again and I was at a 9.  Dr. S came in, broke my water, and I started to push.  Approximately one hour and fifteen minutes after we checked into the hospital, Cooper was born.  He was beautiful and purple and we loved him instantly.  The delivery was so easy and went so smoothly, I wish I could go back and do my first two the exact same way.  Recovery has been amazing as well.  Not even two weeks later I don't feel like I just had a baby at all! 

Cooper is an awesome baby.  He sleeps all the time, even giving me 3-4 hour stretches most nights.  He only cries when he's hungry or when his diaper is being changed.  He is so adorable and looks just like his daddy.  I can't believe he's even got the same red hair that Skeet had when he was little! 

Sawyer is doing so good with his new baby brother.  He's only tried to hit him a couple of times and mostly just ignores him although he has offered up a few kisses to Mr. Cooper.  He says brother and baby really well and there doesn't seem to be any serious jealousy issues... yet.  Daddy has been home and they have been good buddies the entire time.  I am really worried about when Skeet goes back to work.  I don't think Sawyer will take it very well.  I have no clue how I am going to do it by myself either but I am sure I will adjust, because people do it all the time right?

The last two weeks have just flown by and before I know it I will be back to work.  The thought already makes me so sad.  I don't want to leave my boys and I know it's going to be so tough to go back.  I feel like the luckiest momma around.  I have two beautiful baby boys, a perfect angel baby girl and an amazing hubby who has really stepped up and helped me out so much.  I appreciate him more than words can say.  Sawyer is not the only one who is going to miss him next week! 

Here are some fun pics of Cooper from the last two weeks!  I promise more Sawyer pics are coming soon! 

Meeting baby brother for the first time... didn't go so well.

Cooper's cool shades while hanging on the bili bed!

Getting ready to go home.

Leaving the hospital

Trying out the good old bouncy chair for the first time.

He has the scowl too!

First sponge bath!

What a sweetie!

Wide awake!!  This only happens for a couple of hours a day!

Sweet little angel! 

38 Weeks

Well I decided I should post because this will probably be my last pregnancy post EVER!  Sad huh??  It seems such a shame to finally be able to get pregnant on our own and just stop after 2! But we always agreed we'd have 3 kids and Cooper makes #3 so this is it.  I guess I never did tell Skeet that is had to be 3 kids in our home.  We are so fortunate to have 3 beautiful and perfect children so I am not complaining at all... it's just a little sad to accept that we are done.
 At my prenatal appointment today (38 weeks 2 days) I found out that I am dilated to a 5 (almost 5.5) and 80% effaced. The baby is very low and Dr. S said he'd be very surprised if I didn't go into labor this weekend.  I have been so ready for Cooper to come (physically and emotionally) for the last couple of weeks now. I think it's because I have been so tired and my body just feels worn out.  I am still not really prepared to bring another baby home but maybe making those preparations over the weekend will get things rolling in the right direction. I am so worried about how Sawyer will react to a baby in the house and having to share the attention of his parents.  He is such a fun, spirited little boy but he's also a little bit spoiled and really doesn't like it when he doesn't get his way!  Tantrums have become a daily occurrence in our house!  (By the way... I should add that Mr. Sawyer started walking about 3 weeks ago and it's been quite the adventure! ) I will try to do a Sawyer post soon with some fun pictures but here is my update!! The next one will hopefully be of Cooper's arrival!!

How far along:32 weeks.

How my baby is growing: Your baby has really plumped up. He weighs about 6.8 pounds and he's over 19 1/2 inches long (like a leek). He has a firm grasp, which you'll soon be able to test when you hold his hand for the first time! His organs have matured and are ready for life outside the womb.

Weight gain:Too much to say at this point! :)

Maternity clothes: Well I have grown out of a lot of my stuff now and have a very limited wardrobe.  I will say however that the "regular" shirts that I bought to wear during pregnancy are still fitting better than the maternity shirts!

Gender: Boy

Movement: This little guy moves like crazy!!  Maybe he takes after his big brother and is practicing his dance moves!  I have never experienced this before but his movements actually keep me up at night...

Sleep: What sleep?  There's not much of it going on for me that's for sure! 

Symptoms: Contractions, back pain, pelvic pressure, swelling (occasionally, it comes and goes), heartburn, dizzy spells, oh and did I mention contractions??

Cravings: Nothing much lately although my diet mostly consists of baked goods and sweets! 

Best moment lately: There's too many to choose from but it was exciting to hear today how close we are to meeting Cooper!

What I am looking forward to: Holding my 2nd little boy in my arms!! 

35 weeks

This pregnancy is almost over and I cannot believe it!!  I don't have anything ready for Cooper's arrival and I am having such mixed emotions about everything.  Having Sawyer has been better than I ever imagined having a child could be.  To me, he is perfect in every way.  I am sure most people think he is spoiled rotten, and maybe he is.  I try to teach him right from wrong and discipline him as much as you can a 15 month old but his sweet little face, smile, and kisses, usually get him his way more often than not.  Not only with me but with everyone that knows him.  His daddy is the worst.  Daddy doesn't want to say no or make Sawyer upset so when daddy is around Sawyer gets whatever he wants.  I don't know how much this is going to change when Cooper arrives.  I am scared.  Scared that the very little amount of time I have had to spend with Sawyer won't be enough to give both of my boys the attention they deserve.  I am scared that Sawyer will be sad, feel left out, or even be angry at me and the baby.  I want to make sure that I can still show him every day how much he is loved and how special he is.  It may be a little bit easier when Skeet is around more and can take some of the pressure off of me to be both mom and dad.  I try to make the most of my time with Sawyer and I know that with a new baby it won't be as easy. 
Then I think about poor Cooper.  When we brought Sawyer home I didn't want to miss a second of anything with him so I had the hardest time wanting to put him down. I would hold him for hours enjoying the feeling of his warm, tiny body in my arms.  I want to still be able to have moments like that with Cooper but am afraid that I will be spending too much time chasing Sawyer around and trying to keep him out of trouble or keep him from hurting himself (we have a dare devil on our hands).  It's sad to think that Cooper will spend a lot more time in his swing or bouncy chair than Sawyer ever did but I think that will be the reality of it.  It makes me feel bad but I know it has to be done because now I will have 2 babies demanding my time and attention. 
I guess my biggest fear is that when I have 2 kids at home to take care of, I won't be a good mom.  It's been hard to be a good mom while I am pregnant.  I spend more time watching Sawyer play lately, than I do getting down and playing with him (because it hurts too bad to get on his level and don't even get me started about getting up).  I've done my best this pregnancy to make sure that Sawyer isn't affected too much by the fact that I am not as energetic and mobile as I would have been otherwise but it's not been easy these last few weeks and I have had to rely on my parents and my sister more and more.  When Skeet is home it is so nice to know that I can sit and rest and not feel guilty that I am not taking advantage of every moment because I know their time together is precious too. 
I hope I don't come across as ungrateful in this post.  I am so incredibly thankful for all that I have.  I know what a huge blessing this pregnancy is, especially because I didn't think we'd get lucky enough to have another child.  I am so excited to meet Cooper and watch him grow.  To see how much he's like Sawyer, like me or like Skeet.  To wonder if Avery would have been more like him or like Sawyer.  I am excited to see a friendship grow between brothers.  I hope that they will love each other, stick up for each other, and lean on each other as they grow.  I have discovered that there are so many more emotions that come with having 2 living children.  I am sure the worries will double but so will the joy. 
I am still scared about my boys growing up though. I don't want them to grow up too fast.  Especially Sawyer now that he's going to be a big brother.  I hope that we can do everything in our power to make sure he gets to stay a kid as long as possible.  Last night I went in to check on him after he was sleeping and I woke him on purpose accidentally when I adjusted his blanket.  Then I had to pick him up of course and cuddle him until he went back to sleep.  I sat there holding him.  His sweet little head on my shoulder, and I couldn't help but wish there was some way I could engrave that moment into my mind and always remember how it feels to hold my little man that way.  The day is soon coming when he'll be too big and too cool to hug on mom and I don't know if it's the pregnancy hormones or what but that thought makes me want to cry.  I want him to stay sweet and innocent forever! 

Well enough of my ramblings... I'm not going to do a regular pregnancy update until next week but I will share a belly shot from 34 weeks... 

15 Months and More Pictures!

Sawyer had his 15 month check up yesterday and his stats are....

23 pounds (26th percentile)

33 inches (92nd percentile)

17 inch head (I believe close to the 50th percentile... can't remember exactly but it was near the middle).

So he's tall and skinny!!  I really can't believe how tall he has gotten and even though he doesn't weigh much he still has some cute rolls on his legs and dimples on his hands and elbows. I hope those stick around for a while.  And of course those cute cheeks! They are starting to slim down a little but they are still so much fun to kiss!

As I have mentioned before, our little man isn't walking yet.  Well he's taken a few steps but prefers to crawl and boy can he crawl! It's been tough to keep up with him as my belly grows bigger.  I find that when I run after him I end up getting a cramp or a contraction... neither of which are very fun!

His ped seems very impressed with how well he is talking.  He says quite a few things these days some of our favorites being: brother, Cooper, belly, blanket, pretty and he's started saying momma more which totally melts my heart!  He's even putting words together.  He's started saying "hi" when he walks in a room but occasionally he'll say "hi dad" when he sees Skeet or "hi Callie" when I let the dog in the house.  He says "what's that" or "where go?" as he lifts his little hands and opens his eyes wide.  Totally adorable, I'll have to try to get it on film.  He can point to some body parts and even say them as he points, like eyes, nose, mouth, ears and of course belly (belly button).  He thinks it's fun to lift mom's shirt up and point to her (very stretched out and almost outie) belly button and then hurry and pull her shirt back down.  He is also repeating names a lot and can say grandpa, Brenda, Callie and Piper quite well and on a regular basis.  Others he will repeat but he doesn't know who they are. 

This kid has the best personality. He is so funny and has the best facial expressions!  He eats up the attention too.  If you ask him to show you his muscles he'll flex for you and make the funniest face.  He keeps us all laughing.  Also, he can say "bye" but prefers to blow you a kiss when he's leaving.  Sometimes, if he's in a giving mood, he'll even offer up a kiss on the lips.  He really is a sweetie most of the time!

He is such a curious boy and we love to watch him try to figure things out.  I want him to learn and be challenged but I don't feel like I spend enough time with him to actually see that happening.  It makes me sad but we can already tell that he's pretty dang smart and we are so proud of him. 

Sawyer has 2 molars on the bottom and it feels like one is coming in on the top.  They were tough on us as he got an ear infection with each molar's arrival.  The 2nd ear infection was very persistent and required a round of oral antibiotics as well as 3 antibiotic injections (which really hurt... it broke my heart).  The good news is that those were his first ear infections ever but the bad news is that if he gets another as bad, we will probably be looking at getting tubes since we have exhausted most of our antibiotic options for that type of infection.

He also had a runny nose and cough that lasted almost 2 months and that didn't help the infections either.  We knew it wasn't a cold and were beginning to worry that maybe he was allergic to Callie.  However, before the Dr. tried a blood test to see what the allergies were, he wanted to try some Singulair to see if it would help his symptoms.  Sure enough, about a week later everything seemed to clear up and Sawyer has been snot and cough free!!  He is able to play with Callie without getting stuffy so we are hopeful that she will get to stay a part of our family!

Depending on the day, Sawyer can be a great eater and will at least try everything but if he doesn't like it on first taste, he usually won't let it back in his mouth.  He was doing really well at eating all his food and not throwing any on the ground but as soon as the ear infections arrived the throwing came back.  He loves to look me in the eye, grab a piece of food and chuck it as hard as he can off of his tray.  He is definitely a stubborn little guy!  His favorite is still french toast but he loves green beans and peas, snow cones, cheetoes, grapes, fresh peaches, watermelon, cheese, and pretty much anything that is sweet and not good for him.  He got his sweet tooth from both his mom and dad. We need to be better examples to him but don't count on that happening until after Cooper is born!

He is still in 18 month clothes but can wear some of his 24 month stuff.  He fits in size 5 shoes but never wears them.  As much as I love buying shoes, I would live shoeless if I could (and if some of them weren't so cute) so I never remember to put them on him plus when I do, he just takes them off.  I am sure once he starts walking that will change and of course as winter gets closer I plan on getting him used to wearing them. 

He is still napping twice a day, which surprises me but I guess with a 6 a.m. wake up time, the little guy is tired.

He loves the water!  We have taken him swimming a couple of times and to the splash pad in St. George once.  He had so much fun.  I hope to get a few more pool trips and maybe a splash pad trip in before Cooper arrives and before summer is gone.  I love watching Sawyer have fun. It brings me so much joy that I want to see it all the time. I just wish I had more time with him to do fun things! 

 It has been a crazy, busy fire season and Skeet hasn't been home much. I can tell that when Skeet isn't home, Sawyer really misses him.  I try to take him to see Grandpa as much as I can because Grandpa is his favorite, right after daddy!  ( I like to think I come in 3rd... I hope that's the case)  I love to see him get so excited when daddy walks in the door, even if he smells like smoke and is covered in soot, Sawyer still clings to him and cries any time I try to take him or Skeet tries to set him down.  I love that they are so close and hope that it will be the same with Cooper.  I think a boy's relationship with his dad is very important and I know that Skeet cherishes his time with Sawyer.  It's been really tough on him having to spend so much time away from home lately.  We really love the few hours a week we get to spend with him (if we get that much time) and we appreciate how hard he works all he does to make sure that our winters are comfortable and that we don't go without. 





4th of July at the City Park

He found yet another item to carry around in his mouth!

July Jamboree (ignore my fat face and big nose... I am not one of those pretty pregnant women!)

So tall he can reach the top of the table.

Learning to use a fork

First 4-wheeler ride... he loved it!

Watching the 4th of July parade with grandpa.

Still trying to master the art of walking.

That mixing spoon was a little hard to keep in his mouth while he was crawling

Climbing around like a monkey!

Spaghetti face

Cool dude!

Loving the splash pad and river.  That is the sweetest face!

June 2012 Picture Overload

Sawyer has his 15 month appointment tomorrow so I'll do a better update then but here are some pictures from June that I haven't shared yet.  Have I mentioned how much I adore this little boy?  Our lives would be so dull without him. He is awesome!!

His infatuation with carrying things in his mouth started with this ball.

Decided to help daddy with the dishes! What a good boy!

He wasn't happy about the haircut but he loved the sucker (although you can't really tell from the picture)

This kid is always cracking us up... we can't get enough of his facial expressions.

We did find out later that he was actually suffering from his first ear infection.. poor boy!

He got his first fat lip at daycare (a consequence of carrying his toys in his mouth) I almost cried when I first saw it but it went down fast and barely phased him at all!  He's one tough kid!

Cute pudding face!

Sawyer has discovered that he loves drinking from any faucet

This one didn't turn out so well though, he put his entire mouth around the faucet... he hasn't tried that again.

He walks great with his toy... without it, not so much!

Best buddies!