and the answer is...

It was fun to read people's guesses on my 10 random facts. I do love wind, and I actually do love heights, and my friend in high school almost took me skydiving for my birthday once, which I probably would have done if it wasn't so expensive and if my parents had been ok with it. :) I know this seems weird coupled with my fear of falling down grates, but falling into tight, closed, dark space completely unexpectedly just petrifies me, while purposefully jumping into the opened sky with a parachute (and probably a skilled instructor) strapped to my back intrigues me. So the answer is 6. While I do run for exercise and while I am hoping to do a half marathon this summer, I have NO desire to run 26.2 miles in any one sitting. If the chance ever comes to do one someday, I'll probably turn it down. I just don't like running that much. Thanks for playing the random facts game. I'm hoping to convince Chris to do a post like this of himself. I think that'd be fun to read.

10 things you may have not known

As a break from blabbing about my two adorable boys, I thought I'd try one of the random "things you didn't know about me" posts. I enjoy reading these about other people so maybe someone out there will enjoy this.

1. I've pet a cheetah, held a monkey, and ridden a camel.

2. I have a strong preference for Colgate toothpaste, but in order to not waste I'll use other kinds if we're given them and then practically gag my way through my brushing routine.

3. I'm afraid to walk over grates and avoid stepping on anything that could possibly have a huge tunnel to fall into and die from.

4. I have an unusual passion for wearing capes, especially purple ones.

5. I went through a phase where I wished to be Native American so I could run through a forest in bare feet without making any noise. Also so I could marry a man with little if any back/chest hair...turns out you don't have to be Native American to get that wish. :)

6. One lifelong dream I've had is to run a full length marathon.

7. I often have a recurring nightmare where I'm in a public setting, (like teaching a class) needing to speak to a large group but my mouth is FULL of gum which I'm forced to try and discretely scoop out by the handful.

8. Related to number 7: I HATE gum, and will not allow it in my house or car.

9. I absolutely love wind and heights...therefore skydiving has always seemed tempting.

10. I'm a binge reader. I usually have to read a book cover to cover within a day or two or else I don't finish it.

If you've read this far your entitled to know that one of the above "facts" is actually not true. If you like this sort of game, try and guess which one is false.

Grandma Dixie comes!

Yay for grandmas! We've been so happy to have Grandma Dixie, Chris' mom, stay with us. She's been such a help with dishes, laundry, house cleaning, food and most notably: Alec and Charlie. She came with such fun gifts including a gorgeous baby quilt for Charles. Today after giving our bathroom the deepest clean its ever had, she showed me how she makes her home made, home ground wheat bread. We saved some dough to make scones for dinner. Yum, Yum.

Also we've finally put some pictures from our camera on the computer so I can post them here. There is a fun video of Alec talking to Charlie. Somehow, he knows to raise his voice and say everything in question form when talking to babies. Its pretty darn cute. Despite how it looks, Alec did not hurt Charlie when he tried to hold him, it was just funny timing on Charlie's part to start crying at that exact moment. :) Enjoy!

Happy Halloween

The weather here has been perfectly fallish. Thursday night, Chris and Alec carved the pumpkin. We really pumped up Alec saying, "we're going to carve the pumpkin tonight" all afternoon. When the time finally came, Alec ran to his toy drawer and got out a car and started driving it all over the pumpking...."car the pumpkin." It was totally cute. He wasn't into putting his hand inside the pumpkin but he liked using a spoon to get out the seeds and gunk. He used a butter knife while Chris had the sharp knife and liked putting a face on the pumpkin.

Friday had all the look of a cold, spooky Halloween, yet the wind was warm and so enjoyable. Chris stayed indoors with Charlie, while I took Alec out for our courtyard Halloween party. We decorated cupcakes, made lollipop ghosts, ate pizza and entered our pumpkin in the jack-o-lanturn contest. Turns out we won for "scariest!" Good job, Chris. I had to feed Charlie by this time, so Alec went trick-or-treating with our good friends and neighboors. I am a bit sad we missed his first time, but what can you do? He got a handful of candy and seemed to enjoy himself. Alec was a frog and I threw together a witch costume last minute using, of course, my beloved purple cape.

Here is a video of Alec carving the pumpking with Chris:

Crazy

You know its crazy when the person feeling the best in the house just gave birth a week ago. Seems like our little home has been hosting a bug of some kind. Alec has had no appetite the past few days and for those of you who know Alec, that is a big sign that something is wrong. Well, last night when we checked on Alec before going to bed, we found him laying in his bed with diarrhea all over him, his sheets, pillow and bear. This morning he's been super fussy and devoid of energy. Turns out Chris is feeling somewhat the same. Too bad for him since he has to take the last of his comp tests this afternoon. At least after 2 and a half movies this morning, we finally got Alec to fall asleep. I couldn't resist taking this picture of my sleeping boys. I love them, germs and all.

A mother's amendment

Usually, I suppose, the mother has her own version of the birth story. In this case, the father has all his facts right so I feel that no changes are necessary. I will, however, add a few more details based on my feelings to enhance the experience for everyone.

As we were doing the stress tests in the morning, with the possibility of getting a "gel induction," I was feeling a complete 180-degree feeling reversal. Up to that point I only wanted the baby to come as soon as possible. But being restricted to a hospital bed from the very first labor contractions with Chris chasing Alec around the room was not how I wanted to do it. I desperately did NOT want Charlie to come right then. I was thrilled to be able to leave the hospital and start it "my way." I wanted to be at home, take a long shower, get my bag all packed, put Alec down for a nap, arrange the house a bit better etc. However, the contractions never let up enough for me to have the energy to do much. I did get to take a shower and have a bite of toast but basically I was entering the painful stage of labor. So while we were only at the hospital for 3 hours before Charlie was born, the labor had started much earlier. Chris was amazing through the entire labor and delivery. He said all the right things, offered all the right kind of help, support and counter pressure. He was my rock to hold on to, my shoulder to cry and moan on, and the best labor coach ever. We feel so blessed that he was able to stave off the worst of his sickness/cold until after Charlie was born, and additionally blessed to have my mom here to stay at the hospital with me while Chris went home to sleep and get better.

The actual delivery was pretty exciting since it took only a few pushes after my water broke. In fact the Dr. rushed in a minute or so before Charlie was born. Apparently there was another baby born at 5:01 and Charlie was born at 5:05, delivered by the same doctor. Crazy. With Alec, I remember the aftermath/recovery being horrible and so I am pleasantly surprised by how well, albeit still slow, its going so far. I'm definitely enjoying this newborn stage a little more, since I know how fast it goes. Although give me a few more days to finally have the sleeplessness kick in and I'm sure I'll be telling a different story.
We are so happy to be all together and I've absolutely LOVED watching Alec love and accept Charlie into his life with all his cute 2-year-old energy. He laughs whenever Charlie has hiccups, and laughs whenever he opens his eyes, and wants to hold him and hand him to mommy and rub his head when walking by him. Surprisingly, Alec is actually really gentle without us having to tell him to be.My mom left this afternoon, and so now the real fun begins. Thanks for all your help, Mom. I love you.

O frabjous day!

It is my great pleasure to announce that the baby is here! It has taken me a few days to summon up the energy to perform my fatherly duties of posting this information to the blog, and I apologize to you faithful readers, but at long last, here is the story you have been waiting for!

First, for those of you with a busy schedule, the short and sweet version:
Charles Leland arrived wednesday at about 5pm. He was 20 inches long and weighed 7 lbs 4 oz. Both he and Brittney are doing great.


Now, for the (dad's) full story version:
So the baby (now known as Charlie) was due on tuesday. Tuesday passed without too much excitement, other than a few less comfortable contractions in the evening. We thought, "maybe tonight", but then when we woke up wednesday morning we new that it hadn't happened yet. Wednesday morning we had a scheduled doctor's visit, and so we set out for the hospital (where we see Brittney's OB/GYN) and the visit. Things went ok, but when Brittney told the doctor that she hadn't felt Charlie moving as much as normal a few days ago, he thought it would be best to do a stress test, where they listen to the baby's heart beat for about 20 minutes and make sure it is fine, and that there are "excitations" (I think they called them), where the heartrate rises above baseline by 15 bpm for 15 seconds and then returns. So, with Alec in tow, we got to sit in a special room for 20 minutes while they listened, and Charlie wasn't being very responsive. Nothing to worry about, persay, but also not positive enough that the doctor was comfortable letting us leave. So, he sent us down to Labor and Delivery for a longer listen, and if Charlie wouldn't perk up, thought maybe we should start inducing the birth. So, we headed down to a L&D room, still with Alec, and did the stress test again. (Keep in mind that Dad is chasing/entertaining/keeping from destroying hospital equipment with Alec, while Mom is letting the doctor's listen to Charlie's heartbeat)

By this time Charlie was more awake and passed the test. All morning, and especially since first seeing the doctor (Brittney had him strip her membranes (don't ask me what that involves, I have little idea!)), Brittney had been having fairly regular and growing-in-pain contractions. So, we left the hospital and headed home, but by now Brittney was visibly discomforted by the contractions. We arrived home, fed Alec lunch, put him down for a nap, and by then, the contractions were consistent and painful enough that we rushed back to the hospital. Our good friends and neighbors were kind enough to watch Alec for us for the rest of the evening.


So, we got back to the hospital, got reassigned the same room, and 3 hours later, Charlie was there. The rest of the labor was fairly smooth, as labor goes, but not by any other measure. Being there with Brittney (a huge blessing we are so thankful for, considering that 3 weeks ago I was in China), was a humbling experience. She is truly amazing. I cannot believe what she was willing and able to go through (twice) to have our baby boys. It took almost everything I had to watch her go through so much pain, I can only imagine what it was like for her. All of her distress almost broke my heart, but somehow she made it through. It boggles my mind to think that every person you ever see, someone went through that process for them, and that they were a tiny, helpless baby once. We had great nurses to help us, although we were left to our own devices to work through most of the contractions. I am so glad everything went so well.


Later that evening, Alec came to see his brother, and it was very cute. He wanted to hold him, and kiss him, and see his toes, and fingers, and show us his nose, etc. He was so gentle and kind, it was really touching and special to see as a father. I think Alec will be a very incredible older brother. A thought I had a few weeks ago that made Brittney and me smile was thinking of all the Spirits in Heaven fighting over the privilege of being Alec's little brother. I told Alec this and I am sure he instantly forgot, but it was just a fun image of tons of little kids saying, "no, i want to be his brother", "no, me!", and finally someone reassuring "don't worry, you can all be his little brothers and sisters" (just kidding on that one. I think Brittney is postponing even thinking about more kids for quite a little while).





Brittney's mom was able to come and she has been such a help, our apartment and lives would be quite the disaster if it wasn't for her. Brittney and Charlie were able to come home from the hospital on thursday night, and it has been so nice being home all together as a family.


That is all for now, maybe I will coerce Brittney into posting her version/correction of events in the near future. To all whose prayers were with us, we thank you and are sure they made a huge difference. We have been richly blessed by our Father in Heaven.