Finally An Update!

Today we went to Benson's two week check-up and he is growing like crazy he weighs 8'11.5'' and is 21.5'' long. The doctor said he looks great! I am so lucky and blessed to have such a good newborn. He eats well and sleeps for about 3 hours at a time at night. Benson brightens our home with his presence.

Here is Alayna's first meeting with baby Benson right after we got home from the hospital!

Right now -Benson doesn't enjoy a sponge bath at all- we are all anxiously awaiting the day his cord falls off - so he can have a real tubby!

Cute siblings!

Trying something new with Alayna's hair - twists and messy buns!

Awww - so precious - this little man has everyone wrapped around his very tiny finger.

To chase away cold nights - we love to build a fire...Alayna is Dad's number one helper and crumples newspaper and hands him tiny logs - then she basks in the warmth forever...

Alayna was supposed to be eating lunch before she could have chips, but while I was tending to Benson - she took matters into her own hands and decided to crawl out of her chair across the counter and eat chips first!

My two favorite boys - in their favorite position!

Happy New Year!

I finally realized that I could get the pictures off my camera by putting my memory card in the computer(thanks Kali). So here is Benson right after he came out...in all his purple-faced glory!

The self-portrait - not the best, but we were just excited he was out, safe, and healthy!

Coby got to give him his first bath.

Alayna didn't get to come in and see baby Benson, but she did get to see him through the window - she is anxiously waiting for him to come home (and mom and dad).

This is almost a grimace - but I thought it was cute!

A New Year's Eve Surprise!

We are so excited to announce that our new baby arrived December 31 at 1:53 PM.
Benson Thomas arrived about two weeks early (thank goodness!) weighing 8 lbs 3 oz and is 20 inches long. (We forgot the cord for the camera - so we will post pictures soon).
I started having contractions the night before about 11:00pm and the contractions started to become more intense between 4:00 and 5:00 in the morning - when I decided it was time to go to the hospital! We were observed for a few hours while they debated about sending us home because my contractions had slowed down and I wasn't in "active labor". Lucky for us, my doctor was on-call and came in and decided that I had dilated enough (to a 4) - to be considered in "active labor" and he broke my water to really get things started. The nurse checked me about 11:30 and I was a 4+ - I told her I was ready for my epidural, my contractions were starting to get pretty intense. So the doctor came and gave me an epidural about 12:30 and after he left about a half hour later - I was feeling alot of pressure and paged the nurse - she checked me and I was a 9. The nurse started rushing around getting the room ready for delivery and told me not to push - while she paged the doctor. I pushed through 5 (very painful) contractions before he came out - his head came out and his shoulder was stuck - which was really scary, but thanks to our wonderful, skilled doctor - everything was okay. Benson had a pretty bruised face from coming so quickly - and his collarbone has a hairline fracture from getting stuck. His pediatrician said that it will heal quickly and that he really won't be in much pain, unless it gets bumped. So we have his little arm safety pinned up like a sling - and he should be perfectly fine in about 3 days. We are so glad to have Benson here - he is truly a little angel and you can feel how close to heaven he really is. We are so proud and lucky to be his parents!

Merry Christmas!

We spent Christmas Eve with the Kitchen Family and had a great time - enjoying wonderful food and company. Thanks - Brandon and Danielle for everything!

On Chrismas Eve - Alayna got to open one present - New Pajamas!! Here is Alayna with a treat for Santa (pumpkin roll and milk) and Rudolph (carrots).

Playing with her new kitchen from Santa,Grandpa Brad, and Grandma Kelli.

After Alayna opened a present she wanted to stop and play, of course...her she is with a new book and princess earrings.

Coby got a zucchini from his Dad (who is definitely getting the last laugh right now!) - Coby had no idea what this present was and even saved it to open it towards the end. (Coby and his dad have overgrown zucchini wars every year...)

Little Dorothy!! Alayna absolutely loves the "Mizard of Loz" - and has told everybody that she was getting Ruby Red Slippers like Dorothy for Christmas. (Thanks Grandpa Perry for giving Alayna her ruby reds - and Maddie and Moira for the fun Dorothy dress). Alayna cried when it was time to take off her new dress.

We had a great Christmas and want to thank everybody for helping us have such an enjoyable holiday season.

Pre-Christmas Randomness

Alayna was so excited to see Santa at our ward Christmas party - she literally pushed her way to second in line - kind of embarassing, but she wasn't about to wait in line. We didn't get a good picture of her looking, but lets be honest she just wanted the candy cane...

Coby downloaded a couple of apps for his IPod that Alayna loves...the whoopie cushion - it provides literally an hour of nonstop giggles.

And we have the light saber app...Alayna figured this one out right away and loves to "fight".

A Bit of Christmas Cheer!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

We have been practicing our Christmas carols...Alayna loves to sing and dance and gets a little excited - so here it is - "Santa Clause is Comin' to Town". My favorite line for sure is Alayna's version of "He knows if you've been bad or good so be good for goodness sake."

Math Genius in the Making...

I just wanted to write up this little story so I wouldn't forget it...it really is too funny not to share.

The other day I was tutoring a student in Math at my house. I usually try and let Alayna take a nap in the afternoon that will overlap with some of my tutoring appointments. When Alayna gets up from her nap she is usually pretty needy and will come and snuggle on my lap and just listen for a few minutes. Then she will want to color in my notebook and play with my calculator and such...Anyways, so that is how this particular day was going, Alayna was coloring in my notebook as I was explaining how parallel lines have the same slope and yada yada yada...when Alayna picks up the pen and points to the notebook, while looking at my student and says with authority, "This is parallel, THIS IS PARALLEL!"

We just laughed and laughed - apparently my student wasn't the only one learning about parallel lines - Alayna knew what they were and was taking over as the teacher. So instead of practicing numbers and counting with Alayna - I think I will skip straight to Geometry - since she has a knack for it already.